


The Power to Change

by KitKatPurrpurr



Category: Fandomless
Genre: Character building, F/M, Journey, Love Story, Pregnancy, Strength of character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-25
Updated: 2016-06-11
Packaged: 2018-04-27 23:55:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5069848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KitKatPurrpurr/pseuds/KitKatPurrpurr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zoe and Joel are two shapeshifters from vastly different, unhappy lives. Upon meeting they realize that together they can live happily, but untangling oneself with the past is hard, and having the strength to pull through even more so. Over the course of their story, Joel will learn from Zoe that internal motivation is a powerful thing, and that he is more capable of great feats than he knows.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> If I ever decide to do something with this story, like publish it.
> 
> THIS IS A WIP.

The day started out rather dreary, with clouds hanging low in the sky. Rain seemed to be on the horizon, but as the day went on, no sign of such weather came, much to the relief of the many residents within the Feline Kingdom’s capital city. A tense feeling could be felt emanating from every individual, as though one drop of rain would make them snap. The streets were kept clear and even looked a bit neater than usual, save for the markets, which always had a bustle within them. Attending their posts atop the city walls, guards kept their eyes peeled for signs of the long-awaited visitors. The entire city had prepared itself for this visit, intending to show off how well-maintained it was. After all, when one is trying to impress the royal dignitaries of another nation, presentation is key.

One lone humanoid jaguar made her way through the empty roads. Normally she had to push her way through throngs of people, but with most people either shopping in the markets or waiting to greet the dignitaries come their arrival, she got to enjoy a bit of elbow room. Making little sound, she approached the castle building’s backside, keeping her eyes peeled for guards. She was unsure of whether or not to transform completely into her feral self to scale the walls, so she opted to sit for a bit and eat a snack nonchalantly.

The young woman sat down with her back against the wall, stretching her legs and tail out, sighing. She reached into her bag and pulled out a nectarine and a rag. Biting into it, she closed her eyes and felt invigorated by the sweetness of the fruit. It had been several hours since she ate her breakfast of cheese and bread, yet even the meager fruit helped fill the small pit of hunger that grew inside her. As she opened her eyes, she spotted a guard walk by only a short distance away, and she froze. The guard took no notice of anyone nearby, and continued on without pause. Sighing, the young woman finished up her nectarine hastily and tossed the pit into a gutter before wiping her hand clean of juice.

Standing up, she turned back around and looked up the massive wall. She decided it better to fully shapeshift, since at least that way she’d have a pair of claws on her feet too. The jaguar backed away from the wall a few feet. Lowering her front end to the ground, she slowly began to shift into her primal form, her bag staying around her waist while the rest of her clothes morphed into the rest of her form. The transformation complete, she backed up a bit further before breaking into a run at the wall. She propelled herself up the wall, latching onto the cracks with her claws, before making her way up.

Her determination was clear. Even as she lost steam climbing, she pushed on until she reached the top. Pulling herself up onto the top of the wall, she huffed and gasped for air while keeping herself low. As she caught her breath, she spied down to see if any guards lurked around the gardens that surrounded the castle. With nary a guard in sight, she jumped down onto a large bush before hopping down onto the ground. Looking up the walls of the castle, she could see a pathway of rails and ledges that would take her to the ballroom. Smiling to herself, she realized she would get to see the Royal Meeting Ball up close for the first time in her life.

Ever since her youth, she had been so intrigued by this one particular celebration. Every year, dignitaries from each nation would come to the Feline Kingdom and meet to discuss diplomatic treaties, agreements, and whatnot. And following each meeting was the Royal Meeting Ball, in which the visitors were treated to dance, food, and song. It was a joyous occasion meant to foster the relationships among kingdoms, and although commoners weren’t allowed to attend the formal part of the ball, they were allowed to set up their own informal version around the outer walls of the castle and interact with the foreigners who were allowed to come with the dignitaries, but who weren’t allowed to come inside the castle.

This particular jaguar wasn’t satisfied with being a mere participant in the commonfolk version of the festivities. She wanted to see the real thing.

\--

Far off, a large flight of dragons approached the capital city. From a distance they all seemed to look the same, but the closer they got to the front gates, the more obvious their diversity became. Red dragons with a mighty head of horns, purple dragons with shiny plated scales, green dragons with wispy beards, but one particular dragon seemed to stand out from the rest, if only because he was the only blue dragon who flew near the front. He dreaded this meeting, even if it was his first time as part of the royal group from his home, but put on a semi-happy attitude so the others wouldn’t be clued into his disdain for the trip.

As they reached the gates, they came to a halt and landed on the ground, shapeshifting back into their humanoid selves, which kept their wings, tails, and horns exposed. Even these parts of themselves were decorated, though their garish chest plates and emblems on their capes and jewelry certainly drove home the image of royalty.

Fanfare echoed around the entrance of the city, as they lined up behind royalty from other kingdoms. The noise put the blue dragon, who had transformed back into a rather slim man with glasses, on edge. Although he wanted to get the meeting over and done with, he also wasn’t looking forward to getting home and going back to the everyday work involved with his job. Walking in with the others up into the castle, he ignored as many people as he could, avoiding eye contact and keeping his eyes trained on the back of another dragon’s head.

The castle doors closed behind them. One of the feline princes announced that the meeting would be held in a half hour, allowing everyone to rest and visit the bathroom before it began. The lone dragon found a bench to sit on, away from the other dragons, and sighed as he relaxed. A feline servant moved over to him with a tray of water goblets.

“S-sir? Would you care for some water?” She seemed a bit nervous around him. He looked up her and snarled a little bit, making her jump back and almost lose her tray. The fear in the woman’s eyes caused him to feel a pang of guilt.

“Sorry, just on edge,” he apologized. “I’m fine, I don’t need water.”

She scurried away to offer water to someone else, most likely an herbivore of some sort. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall and waited impatiently for the meeting to start. Time passed relatively quickly, and soon he was rushed into the meeting room with the others, the large wooden doors shut behind them.

\--

The jaguar heard the ruckus of music, announcing the arrival of the foreign dignitaries. Taking that as her cue, she ran across the green and hopped up onto the wall of the castle. She found this wall to be easier to climb up, and so she shifted partially back into her humanoid self, needing her hands to grab hold of bars.

Up and up she went, occasionally stopping to catch her breath. The cloud cover had since broken and the sun shone down through the partly cloudy sky, making her trek up the wall harder than the first one she climbed. About midway up the castle’s wall, she stopped on a large balcony to rest and eat another bit of food from her bag. This time she took out grapes and a slice of cheese. The young woman admired the view as she ate, being able to see the far out hills to the west. It was close to four in the evening, and the sun was close to setting. A smile formed on her face as she thought about the view she would have of the sunset from further up on the castle.

Wolfing down the remainder of her snack, she wiped her hands on her pants, tossed the grapevine off the ledge, and got herself ready to continue her climb. This time, she had to focus on not looking down. She wasn’t exactly afraid of heights, but she needed to focus on climbing, as one slip could end her life.

As she neared the end of her climb, she hurried, knowing the meeting would soon be over, and she wanted to experience as much of the ball as she could. Well, from outside.

\--

The doors to the meeting room burst open, and the lone dragon rushed out to get away from the crowd. The entire meeting he had been sitting in silence, listening as the others came to all the agreements on things. Hell, he was only there to learn, according to his superiors. He wasn’t supposed to add input on anything, which was yet another reason he didn’t even want to come.

For now though, all he had to do was survive the after-meeting ball and then he’d be on his way home. It was a tad bittersweet for him.

The group of dignitaries were led down the stairs into the ballroom, where music was picking up and tables of food and wine were set up. On one end of the long room were tables and chairs, and the other was open floor for the lords and ladies to join together and waltz the remaining hours of the day away. People began to pour into the room and congregate near the food tables, and it wasn’t long before a line started to form. The dragon sighed and grabbed a plate, moving in place behind another dignitary in line and waited. Peering around the mass of people, he spotted a particularly appetizing platter of ravioli and felt his stomach rumble. He silently prayed that it wouldn’t be empty by the time he reached it.

Outside the ballroom, the jaguar turned her head, her ears perking up at the sound of music and talking. Crawling over to the windowed door, she peered in, keeping low to the ground. Inside she could see people decked out in their nicest outfits procuring themselves a plate of food. No one had gone to dance quite yet, but the tunes drifting from the in-house music setup were catchy enough to get people’s feet tapping and bouncing about.

As people began to finish eating, they abandoned their plates to mull about the dance floor until they had finished digesting, and then it became a simple matter of finding a partner. It didn’t matter where they came from, the mood was light and everyone looked forward to finding someone to stride about with. The music’s volume grew, and even the jaguar was able to clearly hear the music. She stood up and backed off from the door to skip about. Holding her arms up, she stepped back and forth as though she had a partner, swaying and moving in time with the beat.

Inside, the young dragon stood with one of the other dragon kings as they talked with a duke from the Avian Kingdom. He grew antsy, longing to slip outside to the balcony he spotted not long after getting his food to smoke. Clenching and unclenching his fists, he resisted the urge to pull out his pipe right there, but he knew most people disliked it when someone smoked indoors.

“Hey, if you don’t mind, I’m going to go smoke for a bit,” he said, hurriedly. The other dragon next to him chuckled.

“Well, if you need to. Just remember, we’re leaving in two hours.” He then proceeded to wave him off, excusing him from the conversation.

He gave a sigh of relief and quickly rushed to the doors, fumbling with the lock momentarily. Outside, the jaguar heard the sound of the door lock being opened, and she froze. If a guard or dignitary found her, she was as good as jailed. With nowhere to run, she backed herself up against the wall and to the edge of the railing. Crouching down, she made herself as small as possible and waited nervously.

The dragon pushed his way through the doors and out into the fresh air. His relief was nearly instantaneous as he felt free of the near-suffocating feeling that comes with being in large crowds of people. Pulling out his ivory pipe from a bag he carried on his belt, he began to prep it with tobacco, and once he finished, lit it, tossing the match off the balcony after waving it out. The jaguar remained motionless, watching the stranger take a drag from his pipe, one after another. As she shifted around to get more comfortable, her foot slid on some of the pebbles on the floor of the balcony, causing her foot to slide out from under her unexpectedly, and she gave off a small gasp.

The dragon’s ears perked up and he turned towards the side of the balcony to figure out where the sound came from. Within a second, he spotted the young woman sitting at the edge, a look of terror stricken across her face.

“Uh, hello?” He turned to face her. She didn’t move but kept breathing rapidly. He took a step closer to her. “What are you doing out here?”

“I, uh, I, well, I just, well, you see –“ she stammered. The dragon laughed softly.

“Relax, I’m not gonna tell anyone you’re out here. I’m just curious, since you’re obviously not princess or anything.” His voice was calm and it soothed the panicked jaguar’s nerves a bit. She lowered her arms and slowly moved to stand up. Holding out his hand, the dragon helped her up, then stepped back as she dusted herself off.

“T-thank you, for not alerting anyone,” she murmured. “This is the first time I’ve ever done this, and I was afraid it was the last time I’d ever get to celebrate the royal meeting.” She held out her hand. “My name is Zoe.”

Taking her hand and shaking it, the dragon smiled at her and replied, “I’m Joel.”

Releasing her hand, Joel turned back to the railing and leaned on it, taking another puff from his pipe and blowing it out slowly. Before taking another, he asked, “So what’s got you so excited about the royal meeting? You do know it’s a bunch of stuffy rich people talking about stuff that doesn’t really matter for two hours before we all crowd into a room and get drunk, right? And you’re not even royalty so you can’t even participate in most of that.”

Zoe stood next to him and leaned on the railing with him. “The idea that there are people who get to dress up nicely and eat excessively and celebrate the fact they’re friends is pretty fun I suppose. The most we get is a raucous buffet in the streets that _someone_ has to clean up. We don’t get to just enjoy it. I wanted to see what it was like for those who do.

“Besides, I thought it was fun, the festivities. But you don’t seem to be having much fun at all.” Zoe tapped Joel’s legs with her tail, startling him a little bit. He sighed.

“Well when all you do is sit there and can’t say anything, it’s not much fun. Your ass falls asleep and people seem to just drone on and on.” Zoe giggled as he moved his arms for exaggeration. “And it’s not like being back at home is much better. You sit in meetings, or you’re being escorted everywhere since as a dragon prince, we’re big on the whole ‘fighting for dominance’ thing, and last thing you want is to be unexpectedly attacked.” Taking a long drag from his pipe, he turned away to walk about as he ranted.

“Don’t even get me started on having people do everything for me. I have to constantly shoo away servants. I just want privacy, but the only time I get any time to myself is at night. The others don’t like that I keep my balcony doors open either, but hey I’ve yet to be attacked.” He threw his arms up.

“You know, I thought I wanted this. I studied in school, I fought my way to the top, but now that I’m one of them, all I can see is my life being reduced to this one, replaceable role in which I have to try and either make big decisions I don’t want to make, or I’m not allowed to speak at all. It’s awful and I just hate it.” Joel’s head and wings hung low and he put out his pipe, no longer having the energy to smoke.

“And you know what? I’m gonna have to go back to all that in just a few hours,” he murmured. He turned his head back towards Zoe. “And now you know all this, great. Some cat I’ve never met till now.”

Zoe moved closer to the dragon. “Hey, if you’re so unhappy, why don’t you just leave? Leave your position of power and go live a normal life?” Joel burst out laughing.

“As if it’s that easy! Even if I could, the shame I would feel at not being able to handle the role after fighting so hard for it would kill me, but I can’t leave it in the first place. The only ways out are being too old and retiring, which mind you, is significantly longer for dragons than anyone else, or by being killed.” Scoffing, he finished with, “so no, I can’t ‘just leave.’”

Shaking her head, Zoe sighed. “You can. Just _go_. It’s that easy.” Joel snapped at her.

“It’s not. It never will be. Just leave it alone.”

Zoe stepped back at his sudden anger. “Alright, I’m sorry.” She shifted around on her feet uncomfortably.

“So, what about you? Aside from your obvious fascination with political parties,” Joel asked, looking down at her. He was just noticing how short she was compared to him. Zoe cleared her throat and turned to watch the sunset.

“I’m no one, really. Just your average cat, living in the streets and making a half-assed living. No plans for my future.” She turned her head back around to him. “Kinda sad if you think about it.”

The orange light from the sun lit up the jaguar’s red hair beautifully, and for a moment he felt a fondness for her, though her seemingly content feelings about a dead-end future saddened him. She was certainly the brave type, risking what could potentially be a lifelong jailing to live out a dream. He moved closer to her.

“Well, you have a lot going for you. Think about all you’ve done today. That’s something.” Joel hoped his words would reach her. She turned to face him.

“Okay, so I’m a talented wall-climber. I’ll just go get military training and learn how to infiltrate the enemy’s home,” she replied sarcastically. “Or perhaps I’ll learn how to be an assassin.”

Joel rolled his eyes. “Alright, point taken.”

Zoe sighed and placed her hands on the railing, looking down at them. “I want to do something for myself. I want to get out of this place, live somewhere more spacious. As much as I enjoy the meeting festival every year, I’ve grown bored of it. Yes, I wanted to see it in person, the rich person part of it, but I did. What’s left for me to do?” She lowered her head again.

“I’m waiting for the right opportunity to present itself. I’m not going to jump and make such a drastic decision unless the circumstances are right. And believe me, these aren’t circumstances I can make myself.”

Joel nudged her with his elbow gently and she looked up at him. “So how will you know when they are?” She focused on his eyes before her eyes trailed down to his chest and then back to her hands.

“I don’t know.” A smirk appeared on her face. “But I’m sure I will when they are.”

They stood together in the glowing sunlight, watching the sun sink behind the distant hills. Joel glanced down at Zoe again and felt the same warm feelings he felt earlier. The jaguar felt eyes on her and she looked up at the dragon, causing him to look away in a hurry, a slight blush on his cheeks. She giggled and leaned against him for a moment.

The sound of music emanated from the ballroom, and Zoe looked back at the door and sighed. Cocking his head a bit, he looked at her. “What’s the sigh for?”

The jaguar shrugged. “I’ve never been to a formal dance. Shortly before you came outside, I guess right as you were coming out, I was dancing with myself a bit. I’ll probably never get another chance to listen to music like this and dance to it.”

Joel smiled and took her hand from the railing to lead her to the center of the balcony, much to her surprise.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Her eyes went wide. All the dragon could do was laugh.

“You wanted a dance, right?” He pulled her close and took her right hand in his left before moving his right hand to her waist. She blushed wildly. “Well, perhaps I can give you that dance.”

She stammered a bit. “B-but I don’t know how!!”

“Shh, just make a box with your feet and mine and follow my lead. It’s simple. And if you step on my feet, I won’t get mad.” Her embarrassment was downright adorable to him. She shook her head quickly to clear her mind and took a deep breath.

“Alright, I’m ready.”

Joel lead their dance slowly, making sure Zoe was keeping up and getting the general idea. It wasn’t long before they were moving together quite fluidly, and before long were waltzing together on the balcony in harmony. Releasing her waist, he turned her out and she made a rather messy spin. Pulling her close again, they both started giggling, picking back up with the music. Not a moment later he set her out for another spin, but this time she knew what to do. On and on through the dance, Joel continued to add new steps that she picked up with ease, and although the song didn’t last much longer than a few minutes, time for them seemed to stop. Together in the fading light, they danced and laughed, having the time of their lives, and as the song ended, they found themselves in each other’s arms, smiling and happy.

Pulling away from each other, a little bit embarrassed, they giggled and stood together at the railing, watching the homes beneath them light up like fireflies in the night. Their conversation continued on for another hour, a relationship between them growing fast. It wasn’t until they heard the sound of someone attempting to open the door that they looked back and spotted one of the other dragon dignitaries fumbling with the knob that they panicked.

Thinking quickly, Joel grabbed Zoe and flew up into the air before floating down to the ground. He placed her gently on the grass, and primed himself to fly back up, when he felt her tug on his arm. Her distressed face sent a wave of sadness rushing through him.

“I’ve got to go Zoe. Meeting you was, wonderful, but unfortunately I have to go back to my home. I’m sorry.” He bent his knees for flight but she grabbed tighter onto his arm.

“Please don’t go Joel! This night has been wonderful and, I’m just not ready to say goodbye yet!” Tears welled up in her eyes and she tried to choke them back.

Joel gave her a brief hug before getting his arm loose from her. Shooting back up into the sky, he whispered a faint goodbye to the jaguar. Landing on the balcony, the door opened up quickly and out came one of the dragon kings.

“Blasted door, anyway, Joel are you ready to leave? We’re going to be flying out momentarily.” He waved Joel to follow him.

Under his breath, he wistfully replied, “I don’t know.” The other dragon turned back as he walked.

“What was that, boy?” He asked. Joel sighed.

“Yeah I’m ready.”

The two dragons joined the others in the front hall and all walked out the front door. The crowd of commoners waved at them as they left, though all Joel could think about was how the brief encounter he had with the jaguar had filled him with so much joy.

Meanwhile, Zoe scurried up the outer castle wall and jumped down into the side street where she had eaten her nectarine earlier. Transforming into her feral self, she took off for the front gates as fast as her legs would carry her, hoping she would get to see Joel one last time before he was gone. By the time she reached the front gates, they had already walked to the outside, and Zoe spotted Joel off in the distance with the other dragons. Shifting herself humanoid again, she reached her arm out towards him longingly and watched as he shapeshifted into his full dragon self. His primal form was mighty and incredibly gorgeous to her, and all she wanted was to get to hug him again, to feel that happiness they felt together.

Hope. It was hope that she felt with him.

 _The sign_. Somewhere inside her, Zoe felt the sign she was looking for to make the change in her life. Hearing about how sad he was with his life, then seeing how happy their interaction made him, she knew that not only could he be what she needed, she was what he needed as well. And right now, he needed someone to help him make the choice to be happy.

Zoe padded back to her home off in a side street far from the castle. Unlocking the door and walking inside, she lit a candle and pushed her art supplies off her bed, plopping down onto it and curling up. She lied there for hours, thinking to herself. She knew she was going to go find Joel, but she wanted to be prepared for the journey. Hopping up from her bed, she grabbed her large bag that she could wear on her back and began to stuff it full of supplies. Mainly clothes, but also began to shove some of her art supplies and drawings in too. Soon the bag grew full, so she put things in her smaller bag she had brought with her that day. This one she filled with food, and as much as she could manage. Pausing for a moment, she sat down at her desk.

A few items were still strewn about Zoe’s home, mainly spare pencils and dishes. She spotted a bit of thin rope on the floor off in the corner and grabbed it before grabbing her blanket. Wrapping her blanket around herself, she placed the rope around her waist and rolled the blanket into the rope to secure it. Once the rope was tied off, she giggled.

“Good. I didn’t want to leave my blanket behind anyway.”

Untying the rope, she dug out a robe from her drawers and placed it on top of the bags and rope. She moved her blanket back over to her bed and yawned, the night already half over. The jaguar blew out her candle and locked her door before crawling into bed and curling up with her blanket. It wasn’t long before she drifted off to sleep, thoughts of the distant dragon echoing inside her head.

“ _I swear Joel, first thing in the morning I’m going to leave to find you, and when I do, we’re going to find happiness together. I promise_.”


	2. Chapter 2

Bright light filtered in through the stained glass window, scattering brilliant hues around Joel’s room. Pulling up his blanket over his head, Joel curled up a bit more and grumbled to himself. He had no desire to rise after only sleeping for four hours, and with his usual routine of grinning and bearing his way though his daily tasks shattered by the events of the previous night, he didn’t know where to start. After finally feeling happy for the first time since his initial coronation, having it wrenched away from him so quickly left him feeling lost.

A quiet knock on the door startled him out of his wandering thoughts.

“Prince Joel? It’s time to wake up,” a meager voice spoke to him behind the door.

“Yeah, I know. I’m up,” he retorted.

“I’ll alert the others. Your breakfast will be waiting in the dining hall.” Quick footsteps were heard soon after trailing off.

In one big motion, Joel threw his blanket off and sat up, swinging his legs out next to the bed. Resting his face in his hands, he sighed and rubbed his eyes. The dragon glanced around his room. All of his belongings rested neatly in their places and the various weapons and emblems that hung on the walls inspired awe in those who viewed them. His room was truly one of hard-won royal status.

Joel stood up and meandered about the room, picking up his clothes and getting dressed. His thoughts trailed back to the jaguar he met and the joyous time they had together the night before. Their rushed goodbye sat heavy in his heart, and he hoped she had made her way home safely. Her pestering him over leaving his position of royalty stuck with him, and like an earworm, he couldn’t stop thinking about what it would be like, for him to up and leave. Slipping on his horn rings, he shifted his wings out through the holes in his clothes and pulled on his boots. The dragon took in a deep breath and released it slowly, trying to clear his head of extraneous thoughts before going back to the daily grind.

\--

The moment the morning sunlight hit her bed, Zoe had jumped up awake. Over the course of the next half hour, she gathered up her belongings she didn’t care to take with her and prepared herself to leave. Her bed and desk stood bare in the empty home and as the jaguar prepared to leave permanently, she gave one last silent goodbye before closing the door behind her and locking it up, leaving the key under a rock near the door. Zoe made her way with her bag of excess belongings down to the market only a couple blocks away. Hoping to sell off the extra things for money, she found an empty corner and placed her things out.

“Everything is two gold coins! I just need to get rid of it, so if you see something you like, it’s yours, cheap!” She chimed as people walked by. Managing to sell some of the dishware but still holding onto a few extra items, Zoe changed the price to one gold coin, and by the time she reached what were mostly old pencils, she handed the rest off for free. With nothing left to get rid of, the jaguar abandoned her place and searched until she found someone selling maps. Handing the lion merchant a few of her coins, she asked him a question.

“How does one get to the dragon capital city?” She pulled out the map she bought and a pencil, hoping he could jot down the route for her. The lion chuckled.

“It’s quite a journey. The dragons live in the rougher part of the land, since mountains are their primary home. But the mountain range east of here,” he picked up the pencil and circled the distant mountains, “Is where their capital is. It’s quite far up the mountain, so not only is it one hell of a walk to get there, but one hell of a climb as well.” Drawing a path through the hills and fields, he continued.

“If you take this route, just before you hit the base of the mountain, you’ll encounter a town. I recommend stopping there and resting before making your way up.” The lion placed the pencil down and pushed the map back towards her.

“All in all, should take you about three to four days to get there, so long as you’re not shuffling your feet and walk through the whole day. If you dawdle or break often, could take you five to six.” He nodded to signal he was done.

“Thank you very much.” Zoe smiled at him and tossed him another coin. She wished him a pleasant day, and he waved to her as she left.

“Good luck with your journey!”

The jaguar made her way through the busy streets to the entrance of the city, the map tucked away in her smaller bag. She spoke briefly to the guards, who opened the gate for her, and as she exited the city and the doors closed behind her, she took a deep breath and prepared herself for the journey ahead. The map took her along a road for quite a ways, and she followed it as far as she could. Reaching a fork in the path, Zoe checked her map, which showed to take the rougher path. Gazing upward, the sun had already passed its peak, so she took shelter under a nearby tree and finished up her lunch. Following the new road, she felt her feet begin to tire.

“Damn feet, already beginning to ache. I’ve barely even gone anywhere!” Zoe turned her head around and could still see the city in view, even if it was far off. Turning her head forward again, she could faintly see the mountain range off in the distance. She still had to walk through a rather winding valley before she would reach the forest just before the town the lion had mentioned. Shaking her head, Zoe pressed on.

“I said I was gonna do this, and that’s not about to change. Let’s go, feet.”

On and on she walked. She passed by farms and small homes, watching them slowly light up as the sun set and people resided in their homes. As the light faded, so did the heat, and although it was rather mild outside, the jaguar found herself a bit chilly. Continuing on, she kept her eyes peeled for trees. She was thankful for her impressive night vision, but was on edge about being out in the middle of nowhere so late. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted a rather sturdy tree out in an open field. Zoe ran over to it and climbed up into the branches, holding herself steady. Untying the rope around her waist, she placed her bags on the upper limbs of the tree and tied them up, making sure they wouldn’t fall overnight. Transforming into her feral form, she pulled her blanket up over her and got comfortable. Despite being a big cat, she had never slept in a tree before, though always felt strong disdain for resting on the ground. Putting her worried thoughts out of her mind as best she could, Zoe drifted off to sleep.

The following morning began rather unexpectedly. Feeling something prodding her, the jaguar yawned and looked down at what she felt poking her. A young bobcat had been jabbing her with a stick, and when she made eye contact, he quickly turned into his primal self and bolted, yowling for his parents. Zoe tensed up and quickly shifted back to her human self, untying her bags and fixing herself up to leave. As she hopped down, she heard a deep voice shout.

“Hey you! What are you doin’ in our tree?” Turning around, Zoe saw an older bobcat with his wife walking towards her in a hurry, the young bobcat from earlier hiding behind his mother’s legs.

“Well, uh, I was only sleeping here. I’m really, really sorry sir, I didn’t know this was your tree,” she stammered. They came to a halt a few feet away from her. The man gave Zoe a confused look.

“Why are you sleeping in trees anyway?” He crossed his arms. Zoe swallowed the lump in her throat before responding.

“You see, I’m journeying to the dragon capital. It got late and I didn’t know what else to do, since I’m not comfortable sleeping on the ground. Again, I’m really sorry –“ She was cut off by the bobcat woman.

“You’re makin’ a journey all the way out there? That’s quite a ways, don’t you think?” She turned to look at her husband.

Gathering her thoughts again, Zoe attempted to finish what she was saying. “I really need to get going, so after I eat I’ll get out of your hair –“

“You can eat in our house, dear. I know you don’t want to stay long, but considering you just spent the night in a tree, it feels only right to offer you this,” the woman said. “Please. We didn’t know that you were only passing through, much as you didn’t know this tree belonged to us. To make up for the rough morning we’ve given you.”

Zoe sighed. “Alright, but once I’m finished, I absolutely have to leave.”

The young bobcat stepped around his mom. “Sorry for poking you miss.” She smiled at him.

“No harm done. If I were your age I probably would have done the same.”

The small family led the jaguar back to their home a short ways off from the tree. Bringing her inside, the woman poured Zoe a cup of tea and sat down at the table with her. Meanwhile the young boy pulled up a chair across from her, while his father went and got himself ready to tend fields for the day. Zoe took out a few slices of bread and cheese and began to chow down on them. The wife grabbed food for her and her son and they all ate together. She broke the silence midway through the meal.

“Say, would you like to take some of my roast with you? If all you’ve got in that bag is cheese and bread, then it’s the least I could do to help you on your way.” The bobcat smiled warmly at Zoe, who widened her eyes.

“Really? I haven’t had a roast in ages. So long as it’s no hassle to you, that would be amazing, thank you!” The woman finished up her meal and took her dishes back to the sink before grabbing out leftovers from a roast dinner. Packing them up, she brought them back over to Zoe who put them into her bag. As she ate the rest of her breakfast, the jaguar got her things together and stood up, downing the rest of the tea.

Zoe turned to head out the door. “Thanks again for everything. I wish you all the best!”

“Good luck, young jaguar!”

She shut the door slowly behind her and pulled out her map. Reorienting herself with her path, she set her sights on the far off forest. Zoe knew she most likely would spend the entire day just getting there. Sighing, she started up her walk again.

Her path took her into a rather wide valley, but the further along she went, the fewer farms she saw. Passing by a small creek, she pulled out one of her containers and filled it, drinking the fresh water. Most water in the city tasted a bit stale, and it had been years since she had been far enough out to enjoy cleaner water. Shortly after, the jaguar came across a rather well-worn road, and every several hundred feet was a sign that read “You are now entering the domain of the Dragon Kingdom and are expected to follow our laws. Failure to comply will result in imprisonment.” The other side of the sign said the same thing but for the Feline Kingdom. A smirk came across Zoe’s face.

“Well, I made it this far,” she mumbled to herself.

Finding a small hill to sit on, she sat down in the grass and pulled out a snack. It was well past midday, and while she needed to reach the forest by nightfall, her stomach rumbled loudly. As she ate, a few critters went by, out looking for food themselves. Zoe found the isolation from the city to be incredibly freeing and very peaceful. When she stopped chewing and closed her eyes to listen, all she heard were insects and birds chirping, as well as the breeze rustling the grass and leaves from trees. She could even hear the stream from earlier.

Packing her things up, Zoe stood up and headed on to the forest. Her pace quickened, and she figured she could reach the forest in a matter of hours if she kept up a faster speed. While she walked, her thoughts went out to the dragon she was going through all this effort to find. She felt a pang of sadness at how he must be dealing with his duties, especially after their meeting, and hoped he wasn’t struggling to keep a solid façade up on how he felt about his life. Her feet ached like she had never felt them ache before, but her determination to press on kept her from taking yet another break, and the jaguar marched on with purpose.

\--

Joel twirled his fork around in his pasta, disinterested in his plate of food. He kept his eyes down as the other dragons at the table discussed various events from the day. Most of it was about city upkeep and the agreements that were made at the meeting a couple days ago, but the topics were quickly getting tired out, and the table began to fall quiet. One of the dragons, a rather gangly one with long blond hair, took this time to speak up.

“Do you all recall how I’ve been researching magic?” He seemed rather excited, a wild grin spread across his face. The others snickered a bit.

“Oh but how could we forget your experiments, Raphael! Remember when you accidentally set your tail on fire?” Another dragon jested. The prince scoffed at the laughter.

“Well then you’d all be pleased to know I have actual results!” He stood up, unable to control himself. “In fact, I’m actually quite surprised at how easy it is to manipulate the magic energy within us. I know the magic had been lost for so long, but at last we can use it once again!”

The other dignitaries were agape at the panting dragon, who had gotten so worked up he practically shouted the last bit of his sentence. Joel even looked up for a brief second. After a moment of silence, they all began to murmur to each other. Raphael laughed to himself.

“If any of you would like to see me put this magic into action, then after dinner come to my lab on the third floor.” He sat back down in his chair and resumed eating as if he hadn’t just caused such a commotion. Rolling his eyes, Joel picked away at his meal until he felt relatively satisfied. He didn’t care about whatever magic this other dragon had managed to unearth, since he’d probably never get the chance to work with it anyhow, nor did he want to associate himself with the oddball dragon. The first one up from the table, Joel headed up the stairs to his room and went in. Taking off his royal things, he pushed his way out to his balcony and watched the sun set. The view from his home wasn’t nearly as impressive. The mountain partially obstructed the view, and even then there were trees that covered part of the horizon. It wasn’t the same as the view he had from the other castle.

The dragon turned around and headed back into his room, removing all of his clothing but his underwear. He already shifted his wings into his back, so he dropped onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling. The breeze coming from outside started to chill him, so he removed his glasses and set them aside before curling up under one of his blankets. Knowing he wouldn’t fall asleep for a little while, Joel found himself fantasizing about life in the countryside. He thought about having a plot of land where he grew food for himself, didn’t have to see a bunch of people every day, and felt relaxed. As he envisioned himself out tending fields, he suddenly found himself adding the jaguar to the fantasy. She was there, helping him with the crops, eating meals with him, and together they were very happy.

“ _I can’t stop thinking about her. What she said. I mean, I really DO want to leave. But I don’t know how! How do I get there, to that happy state? I just want to be there now!_ ” Joel groaned and rolled over in his bed. He felt mentally drained by the very thought of leaving, and taking the idea seriously only made the feeling worse. Figuring he could think more on it tomorrow, the dragon shut his eyes tightly and pulled the blankets up, and as he tried to fall asleep, his mind continued to dream of the fantasy he had just created.

\--

Zoe awoke as the sun shone down onto the tree she was resting in. This morning she felt even more physically exhausted than before, but at least she had reached the forest she had been aiming for. She knew that on the other side of it lied a village where she was suggested to rest in. Stretching out and preparing herself for the day, Zoe looked forward to the change of scenery that came with being in a forest. Birds were much livelier, and the desire to hunt one down started to grow within her, but she shrugged it off when remembering she had the roast with her.

The meat proved to be the best meal she had had in a while, and it gave her the extra energy to get started on her hike through the woods. The jaguar chugged along, passing through clearings and making a path through the brush. She could hear small animals scatter as she walked, but occasionally she looked up and could see squirrels and birds sitting in the trees. The only thing Zoe disliked about being in the forest was the trees keeping her from seeing the sun, and while the dappled woods were breathtaking, she wasn’t sure how long she had been walking, nor where she was going.

The forest took a rather sharp incline, but once she climbed to the top of it, she spotted the edge of the woods and could see buildings off in the distance. Zoe carefully made her way down the hill, and as she exited the forest, she looked up and could see not only the sun just past midday, but also the base of the imposing mountain just a little ways off. Knowing a decent break for her feet wasn’t far off, she picked up her pace and quickly approached the town, when she stopped suddenly. It had just occurred to her that she was a cat, and no longer was she in her home kingdom. How would these strange dragons react to her? Zoe pulled up her hood and shifted her tail away before continuing forward.

The streets of the town were fairly empty, but sounds coming from buildings revealed that she was in fact not alone. Keeping her head down, the jaguar looked around at the various homes and stores, hoping to see signs of life. Rounding a corner, she collided with a dragon who had been completely engrossed in a book. The book fell from the dragon’s hands and Zoe stepped back, startled.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” She reached down to pick up the stranger’s book, only to find that they also reached down for it as well.

“It’s all good! It happens! Besides, I remember where I was.” The dragon had a rather shrill voice. Zoe stood up and looked at the dragon to see what she looked like. She was roughly the same height and had three small horns growing on her head. Hoping that she’d believe Zoe too had horns, albeit small ones, the jaguar smiled and shrugged.

“Hey, you’re new around here. Why don’t I take you to the pub? That’s where most people are right now.” The dragon took Zoe’s arm and led her down the street. “It’s not just a pub, but where we all meet up as a town.” A massive feeling of dread washed over Zoe as she was taken there. She could handle hiding her identity to one or two dragons, but wasn’t sure how a group of them would feel about her if they found out she was a cat.

The dragon pushed Zoe through a door and into a large room where twenty or so other dragons were sitting and talking. “Hey guys! Look what I bumped into!” They all turned to face the panic-stricken jaguar. However, their warm smiles began to put her at ease.

“Welcome! You must be a traveler passing through!”One of them greeted. Zoe nervously nodded in response. “Well, we’re friendly to everyone who visits, whether or not they’re headed for the capital or somewhere else.” Zoe lowered her shoulders.

“Y-you are?” She couldn’t hide the shaking in her voice. Another dragon in the back spoke up.

“Well yeah. We get all kinds through here. Birds, bears, bison, you name it.”

Zoe sighed in relief. “Well good,” she said, as she pulled her hood back. Murmurs came from the group and they talked amongst themselves for a moment.

“Wow, we haven’t seen a jaguar in ages!” A random voice rang out.

Blushing, Zoe shrugged. “Well, it’s nice to see I’m welcomed here. I was told I could rest here before going up the mountain.” The dragon who brought her in led her over to the table, where another dragon stood up and offered her a seat. The others crowded around her.

“Why you going to the capital anyway? We’d love to know.”

She looked around at all the eager faces. They seemed so welcoming, and considering this was more or less her first time interacting with dragons where she was the minority race, she was thankful. Even as a young girl, she was told that dragons were territorial creatures, and to never encroach on their belongings or homes.

“You see, I’m going to see one of the royal dragons,” the jaguar explained.

“Which one?” A young dragon exclaimed. Another one followed suit. “Is it Prince Ben? King Carter? Princess Lisa?” The mother of the youngsters shushed them. Zoe giggled.

“I was going to see Joel. Er, Prince Joel.” Everyone oohed.

“He’s a handsome one I’ve heard,” a woman to her left said. “He’s pretty new, actually. Doesn’t go out much with the others, so we haven’t seen him come out past our town except for a couple times. He’s blue, right?” Zoe nodded.

“We met at the Royal Meeting Ball. I snuck up the castle walls, and he came out to smoke, and that’s when he found me. I liked talking to him, and he had to leave so quickly that, well, I wanted to see him again.” A sigh escaped her. “I’ve been walking for three days to get to the capital, but like I said, was instructed that resting here would be the best thing to do before trekking up the mountain.” Some of the others nodded.

“Dragons don’t need to take the hike, what with our wings and all, but we have visitors who have to walk, such as yourself, so we made a path to the city,” and older man said. “Just remember, it’s not an easy climb, and the higher you go, the thinner the air, which is hard when you’re hiking.” Zoe nodded.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

The conversation among them continued on for quite some time, and the jaguar told them all about her life, until the sun began to set and everyone started to leave for home. A tall woman approached Zoe as the final few stragglers left.

“Hey, the upstairs of this pub is where I sleep. I’ve got an extra bed if you’d like to rest in it for the night.” A huge smile grew on Zoe’s face.

“That would be great, thank you! I’ve been sleeping in trees the last two nights, and a bed is a big improvement on that.” The dragon’s brows went up.

“You slept in trees? Damn, you must be dedicated if you’re willing to sleep in a tree just to find this guy.” Zoe laughed at her comment.

“Oh, and do you happen to have any food? I seem to be running out.” She dug through her bag and found only an apple left. The woman waved her over to the bar and the jaguar followed her as she passed through a door.

“Honey, we’ve got a warm home-cooked meal for you if you need one,” she said, allowing Zoe into the room. Inside was a well-stocked kitchen currently in the process of making dinner, and the smell made the hungry jaguar’s mouth water. “Tonight’s beef and mashed potatoes with veggies. Sound tasty?” Zoe nodded slowly as she took in the sights and smells, making the woman laugh.

“Just gotta wait about ten more minutes. I slipped off during all the talking to start on it, and it should be ready soon. Why don’t you go put on some clean clothes and I’ll let you know when it’s ready?” The dragon moved further into the kitchen and Zoe turned around to head upstairs.

“Your room will be the first door on the right!” She called up after her.

Not taking the stairs too quickly, the jaguar made her way up and entered the room. It was a rather bare room with a dresser, bed, and an old desk, but it was nicer than what she had back at her old home. Removing the bags from her back and shoulder, Zoe dug through them until she found a shirt she hadn’t yet worn. She changed quickly and shoved the dirty shirt into her bag as far down to the bottom as she could. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, her feet throbbed, and she massaged them a bit. The room wasn’t drafty at all, and having a nice warm place to stay was an incredible feeling. It wasn’t long until she heard the friendly dragon call her down, and after eating a delicious meal, she came back up to her room and slept better than she had in a long time.

The next morning things went by rather quickly. She woke up to the smell of eggs and bacon, and while she ate, some of the dragons she met the day before snuck in extra snacks and things into her bag. One of the items was the book that fell on the ground when Zoe bumped into the one woman she met the day before, who apparently finished the book that night and felt Zoe should read it too. After hugs and goodbyes, Zoe set off on the pathway up the mountain.

The air was crisp and the sun was shining, and Zoe couldn’t have felt more excited about finally being on the last leg of her trip. The further up she climbed, the fewer trees she could see, and by the time she got halfway up, all that grew were small bushes and moss. The hike was starting to wear her out as the slope increased, and as soon as she found a flat resting spot, she sat down to catch her breath. Zoe admired the view from her climb and glanced upward at the sun. It wasn’t even noon yet, meaning she would reach her destination around the mid afternoon. The walls of the city were partially visible through the clouds, making for quite an impressive sight.

Zoe picked up her things and continued onward and upward. As she walked, she noticed the thinner air and found herself having to breathe more consciously so she wouldn’t pass out. The closer she got to the gates, the taller and more intimidating the whole city began to look. To her surprise, the massive wooden doors were open, and she was able to walk into the city unhindered. However, recalling that these dragons weren’t like the ones she met earlier, she pulled her hood up as she walked in.

The entrance was rather open, and all the streets branched out away from it. Looking up, she could see the imposing structure of the castle. The castle where she knew Joel would be. Taking the road that led straight to it, she very quickly found the roads to be wildly confusing, and it wasn’t long until she found herself lost. Zoe did her best to ignore the street sellers who attempted to shove their wares in her face, but she did keep her eyes peeled for anyone who she hoped could tell her how to get to the castle. Off on a street corner she spotted two guards standing around, so she padded over to them quickly.

“Excuse me, but could you tell me how to get to the palace? I seem to be a bit lost,” the jaguar politely asked. The guards looked down at her.

“And what business do you have at the royal castle, hm?” The left dragon stepped forward a bit, intimidating the small cat. Zoe panicked, knowing she’d have to come up an excuse.

“Well, you see, I’m traveling across the land, hoping to see some of the biggest and most spectacular sights in all the land, as well as getting a chance to draw them,” she lied, reaching into her bag and pulling out one of her drawings. The guards looked down at the drawing then at each other for a moment.

Clearing his throat, the right dragon pointed down one of the streets and said, “Follow this road for two blocks then turn right. Follow that road all the way down and you’ll reach the steel gates in front of the castle. If you want to get past them and draw the castle, you’ll have to take it up with the guards there.” Zoe nodded and thanked them before heading off in the direction he gave. It took no time for her to reach the castle gates, but that was when she noticed the wall surrounding the castle. The upper section was covered in spikes, and there were bars that bent back and down away from the wall. The thing was completely climb-proof. The only way the jaguar was going to get in now was to persuade the guards to let her in to draw the castle.

Walking up to the gates, Zoe cleared her throat, getting their attention. “Would it be alright if I was allowed onto the greens for a while? I’m a traveler looking to draw the biggest, most beautiful wonders of the world,” she took out the drawing from earlier, “And this castle is the biggest most beautiful one I’ve seen so far.” The guards frowned.

“Strangers are not allowed into the castle greens. Please leave.” Zoe panicked.

“Please sir! This is my lifetime dream, and without a clear view of the castle, I don’t think my vision can be complete. Besides, if my work could inspire others to come visit this place, then I’ve done a good job, don’t you think?”  Her desperation was not faked this time, though not for the reasons the guards believed. The first guard sighed before leaning down a bit.

“Do not enter the castle under any circumstances or you will be removed from the city permanently and never allowed to return,” he murmured, opening the gate. Zoe smiled at him as a tear rolled down her cheek.

“Thank you, thank you so much.” Her dream of seeing Joel again had nearly been squished out after working so hard to get as far as she had, and her tears were genuine.

Walking in, the jaguar went as far away from the main guards as she could before she found a spot away from anyone at all and hid behind a bush. Her eyes trailed up the wall of the castle until she spotted one room with a balcony and an open door. Knowing it to be Joel’s room, she then proceeded to plot her path up the wall to get there, pulling out paper and a pencil to jot down the route. Mentally going over it, she felt a bit nervous. The walls back in the jaguar’s own capital she had seen all her life and she knew like the back of her hand, and she had had all the time in the world to study them. These walls were new, and she didn’t know what to expect when she would climb. Of course, she had several hours to do just that, so she focused hard and studied every crack she could see.

Time seemed to crawl by, and by the time she got bored of going over her plan for the hundredth time, she pulled out one of the snacks that her dragon friends had given her. Wrapped up were about seven small dumplings, all of them packed full with meat. Each one was like a bite of heaven to her, and she found herself licking her fingers clean afterwards.

Zoe watched the darkness travel up the side of the castle until it had completely enveloped it, and lights began to glow from the castle rooms. Guards only periodically patrolled through the greens, and the patrols became less and less frequent. She spotted a light in Joel’s room and it made her eyes widen. This was her moment to start her climb. The jaguar rapidly went over her path again in her head several times. With all of her things on her back, she wouldn’t be able to make it, so she placed her bags on the ground behind the bush before darting out and over to the wall. Her heart was racing as she hopped up the side, but her determination to reach Joel kept her nerves under control as she made her way up.

Meanwhile, Joel prepped his pipe to smoke as he walked out to his balcony. He had removed his shirt but kept his wings out, allowing them to stretch. The stars slowly began to glow brighter and brighter as the sun completely sunk below the horizon. Taking puffs from his pipe, he messed with the smoke, creating rings. The wind picked up and chilled him, so he put out his pipe and went inside. Shifting his wings away, the dragon crawled into bed but did not attempt to sleep. Although he placed his glasses on his night stand, he lied on his back and stared up at the ceiling, his hands behind his head, lost in thought.

A small grunting sound came from outside. Joel shot up in bed and braced himself, staring at his balcony. When the sounds continued, he slid out of bed, grabbed his glasses, and slowly approached the outside. A hand suddenly appeared grabbing onto the railing, and he stepped back. That was when the stranger hauled themselves up over the railing and fell down onto the floor, rolling towards him. It took only a moment for him to realize that it was Zoe who had climbed her way into his bedroom. He hurriedly got down to the floor and picked her up, taking her to his bed so she could catch her breath. As soon as she recovered, she looked up at Joel and pulled him into a tight hug, which also partially pulled him onto her. He put his hands out so he wouldn’t fall, but hugged her back with one arm.

When he pulled away, he frantically asked, “Zoe, what are you doing here? And how did you get up here?” Joel kneeled next to her as she turned to face him.

“I walked all the way here from where you met me. I traveled through the countryside, I made my way through a forest, and I climbed up not only this mountain, but the wall outside your room.” The jaguar smiled at him. “I came to find you.”

Joel’s jaw dropped and he stared at her with wide eyes. “Are you serious??” She nodded.

“You told me you were unhappy. Back on that balcony you spilled to me things that you had never told anyone else, and I _listened_. I want to help you be happier. And you want to know why? Because you’ve made _me_ happier. We can help each other out; you just have to trust yourself that this is the right thing to do.” Zoe looked Joel dead in the eye as she spoke, but he turned away, standing up.

“Zoe, you don’t get it, I can’t leave. I can’t face the shame, and I can’t handle the consequences.” His head hung low and he hugged himself a bit. “I just _can’t_.”

The jaguar stood up and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind before gently spinning him to face her. She placed her hands on his jaw. “Look at me.” The dragon begrudgingly moved his gaze to meet hers.

“Change is scary, but you can’t stay unhappy forever. There is nothing for you here. You will never be happy like this, because nothing will change for you. You’ll be doing the same thing, day in and day out until you either die of old age, or someone kills you.” Zoe released his face.

“Now I didn’t just abandon my home, walk for four days, sleep in trees, hike up a mountain, lie to royal guards, and scale the wall of a castle to just give you a pep talk. I want you to come with me.” She closed her eyes as she spoke the last sentence. Joel’s eyes widened.

“We can go and fly away into the night together. We’ll travel so far that the only people who know us will be whoever lives in whatever town we’re near. Unaffiliated with any nation, we can be one dragon and one jaguar who happily live together someplace secluded.” Zoe moved closer to him and lowered her voice. “No more royal duties, no more servants, and no more crowds. Just you and me.”

The dragon closed his eyes and breathed heavily, the possibility for such a life being real shaking him to his very core. Zoe placed a hand on his chest before slowly sliding it up to his chin, lifting his head up. Opening his eyes, he swallowed the lump in his throat.

“I’ll do it. I’ll come with you.”


	3. Chapter 3

The two of them pulled apart and Joel went to go put on a shirt and grab some of his things. Zoe got him a bag and stuffed the things he handed to her inside of it. Bringing nothing that reminded him of his royal life; he took mainly clothes but also grabbed a stash of coins.

“We might need these to buy land,” he said as he tossed it to her. She nodded in agreement. The dragon could barely handle his excitement. He never thought he would ever abandon his royal title, but now that it was happening, he couldn’t have been more overjoyed. They finished packing up the remainder of his things when Zoe remembered the items she left down on the ground.

“I need to pick up my bags before we go. You think you could float me down so I can grab them?” She asked.

“Of course, we just need to make sure the guards don’t see us,” he replied, pulling on a coat. Zoe readied herself to be brought down to the ground while Joel rummaged around in one of his drawers. He grabbed out a pair of goggles and tossed them to Zoe, who hung them around her neck for the time being.

“You’ll probably want these when we fly. And also probably a jacket. I can grab you one when we fly back up.”

Zoe looked over the edge of the balcony and didn’t see any guards, so she waved Joel over. “Just drop me down on the ground. I’ll run across and grab my things and run back, so don’t move once we’ve landed.”

Picking the jaguar up, Joel floated down to the ground, his heart racing. He watched as Zoe sped across the green and snatched her bags, quickly yanking her off the ground when she got back. Flying back up to his room, he placed her down on the floor and ran in to grab a jacket for her. The dragon brought it out and watched as she put it on before shapeshifting into his fully feral form. Zoe walked back into his room and pulled ropes off of the curtains, bringing them back outside to their bags.

“I need to fasten this stuff onto you so it doesn’t fall off in flight,” she explained. Joel nodded and lowered his wings so she could tie the ropes onto him. Her small bag stayed on her shoulders, but her bigger bag of belongings she fastened to her back as tightly as possible, and his belongings she tied behind his horns. “I’ll hold this one while we fly to keep it steady.”

Joel rumbled happily as the jaguar climbed onto his back. “I’ll be honest with you, I’m a little scared. I’ve never ridden on a dragon before. So if I grip into you with my claws, just know it’s because I’m afraid of falling off.” There was an air of humor to her tone, but her nervousness was very much obvious. Joel spread his wings out wide and Zoe braced herself for takeoff, getting herself low.

Pushing off from the balcony, the dragon propelled himself forward and up into the air, his wings pushing him up in one big motion. Zoe pulled the goggles up over her eyes as soon as the cold wind blasted them, and she clung tightly to him. Within minutes, they were high above the ground, flying east and away from the city. Zoe shouted directions at him as best she could with the wind drowning her out.

“Keep going this way! We’ll fly through the night and more until we’re far away from anything that looks remotely like civilization!” She clung tightly to the dragon’s back while looking towards the rising moon. The breeze that rushed over them chilled the jaguar deeply, and she was thankful for the coat Joel gave her.

The two of them flew for hours without stopping, and during this time Zoe managed to nap for a bit. Every now and then they would pass over roads with signs, indicating their passing through various kingdoms, but one rather small one with large signs piqued their interest, and they flew down to check it out. Joel pulled up close so Zoe could read it.

“It says ‘Warning! Beyond here lies the free country, ungoverned and unprotected except by international law. Communities not affiliated with any nation are responsible for their own possessions and security and cannot receive government assistance from any kingdom. By crossing this line, you hereby agree to these terms.’” They glanced at each other before Zoe giggled. She signaled him to keep going, and the dragon leaped into the sky once more.

The sun breached the horizon not long after their takeoff, so Joel diverted his path north to avoid staring into the bright light. They passed by towns in forests and on hills, but spying a sunny hillside not too far from a small village, Zoe motioned for Joel to fly down and rest. As he landed, Zoe began untying the bag from his horns, and when she hopped down, he transformed human again, panting heavily. He fell to his knees in the damp grass, startling Zoe.

“Joel!” She gasped, leaning down to help him. The jaguar rooted around in her bag and pulled out her blanket, which she found herself able to fit it inside of. Spreading it on the ground, she helped him lay down on it before sitting down next to him. She scooted closer to him and brought her small bag to her front.

“You should drink some water and eat something. I don’t want you to pass out,” she rambled, grabbing out jerky and her water container. Smiling at him, she said, “You did good, Joel. I think we’ll settle here.”

Joel covered his face with his hands as he caught his breath. “How long did we fly for? Maybe eight, nine hours?” A small laugh came from him. “Never flown that long before.” He slowly sat up and took the food from Zoe.

She turned and looked out at the rising sun. Blinking slowly, she took a deep breath. “Everything out here feels so free and pure.” Placing her hand on Joel’s, she looked back at him. “Our new life can begin now.”

After a quick breakfast, the two picked back up to the sky, leaving their things behind on the hill except their money, and flew over to the nearby village. They introduced themselves to the locals and met the person, a kind raven, who owned the land they hoped to purchase. He happily sold the land to them for a reasonable price, and even offered up the help of some of the other villagers in building their home, which the dragon and jaguar graciously accepted.

Within a matter of days, Zoe and Joel had a home built, and moving in was the most exciting part of all. As they brought their bags in, they looked around at all the space and couldn’t help but hug each other, a few tears streaming down Zoe’s face.

“This is real, this whole thing is real and I can hardly believe it,” she murmured. Walking into their bedroom, she found one large bed with a mattress on it. “Hey Joel, this bed has a mattress already! All we need to do is make some sheets for it and pillows.”

The dragon walked into the room after her. Bumping her with his hip, he asked jokingly, “You sure us having one bed won’t be a problem?” She leaned into him and rolled her eyes, making him giggle.

They unpacked their things and headed back into town, hoping to get some supplies and get some help for some of the other tasks they had ahead of them, like plowing fields and sewing bed sheets. Upon arriving, they split up to go seek out the people they needed.

Zoe headed over to the home of Meg, a doe whom she met the first day they landed. Knocking on her door, the jaguar waited until the deer opened it.

“Well hello Zoe! What brings you here today?” She spoke.

“I need to make things for the house, like curtains and bed sheets and pillows, but I have essentially no sewing skills. I was hoping you might be able to help?” Zoe played with her fingers as she asked, a bit shy. The doe put her hand on Zoe’s shoulder.

“Of course dear! We can knock out at least the bed things today, though you’ll probably have to come back tomorrow to make curtains.” A big smile spread across her face as she took her into her home.

Across town, Joel met up with a boar named Justin, asking him about his wooden handiwork. The dragon came to learn that it was Justin who had made all the cabinets and other big pieces of furniture in their home, so he eagerly asked to learn from him. After a few hours, the boar had shown Joel how to carve out dishware from pieces of wood, among other things, and sent him off down the road to meet with Frank. Frank was a beefy ram who had married a lost female wolf he met many years ago while out scouting for new farming grounds. His crops were always the talk of the town every year, and with Joel’s complete lack of knowledge on how growing food works, he desperately needed help.

The ram took the dragon around the back of his home and out to the sprawling fields full of vegetables and fruits. Joel was in awe at the sheer magnitude of crops. The two walked through the rows and Joel listened closely as Frank explained the intricacies of farming, taking as many mental notes as he could. Informing Joel that the dragon would not be able to grow enough food by the time fall and winter rolled around, the ram offered to help him get his fields ready for the following spring.

“We can dig out the places you’ll need to have ready and fence them off, but otherwise you’ll need to come to all of us so you can stock up on food,” the ram said, leading him back to the road.

Back at Meg’s home, Zoe was finishing up on the bed linens. The doe had been helping her as she herself made the pillows, and she couldn’t have been more proud of the jaguar’s progress.

“Those sheets will last you a long time, so long as you wash them regularly. Good job on them!” A proud smile spread across her face, making Zoe blush.

“Thanks for helping me make them. Of all the things we needed to have tonight, I figured a made up bed was the most important.” Picking up her things, the jaguar prepped to leave. The deer reached out and took her arm to stop her.

“Hold on for just a moment. I have some food to send home with you, since I’m sure you don’t have much right now,” she said as she moved towards the kitchen.

Zoe stood and waited while Meg grabbed the food. She could hear sounds of the doe fumbling with dishes, which made her chuckle a bit, but it wasn’t long before she was back over with a basket full of vegetables, bread, and fruit.

“Stop by tomorrow and we can continue with the curtains. Get home safely dear!” Meg called after as the jaguar exited the house.

Joel met up with Zoe in the center of the town, the sun already behind the hills. Making their way home, Zoe fumbled with the basket of food and thought over what to make for dinner. She picked up one of the potatoes and looked in at the other items, when an idea struck her.

“Say, how do baked potatoes and veggies sound?” She asked enthusiastically. The dragon hugged her with his arm.

“There’s nothing I’d want more, to be honest,” his thoughts trailing off to his future dinner, making his mouth water. Zoe giggled at him.

“As soon as we make it home, I’ll get started on that.”

Their trek home didn’t take particularly long, and once they arrived, got to work getting their oven heated up. Together they prepared dinner, with Joel peeling the potatoes and Zoe cutting and seasoning them. Meanwhile they also began to stew carrots, celery, and other vegetables, and by the time they were ready, the potatoes had baked completely.

The two of them grabbed out the plates Joel had made earlier and washed them off before grabbing their dinner. Tucking into their meals, they barely spoke. It wasn’t until both of them had finished eating that one of them managed to get a word out.

“Now THAT was a delicious meal,” Joel said, leaning back in his chair. Zoe smirked.

“Well thank you.” She stood up to wash her dishes, and the dragon looked over at her.

“Hey I helped you know,” a sly grin crossing his face. Zoe waved her tail at him, rolling her eyes.

“Alright, well then thank you too for the meal,” she muttered, “Ya big baby.”

Joel shook his head and laughed to himself, standing up. As he turned back to the jaguar, he found himself staring at her fondly. She continued to scrub dishes intently while he sauntered over to her backside. Sensing someone behind her, Zoe turned her head around and jumped a bit when she saw the dragon. She blushed and looked up at him, leaning on the counter. Moving a hand to her cheek, Joel caressed her and tilted her head up a bit more.

“You’re an incredible woman, you know that? You’ve done amazing things, and even now you’re still just as determined as the day I met you.” He smiled down at her, and she reddened even further. Taking a small step back, Joel kept his hand on her jaw, and Zoe stopped leaning against the counter, instead moving forward with his hand. “The day we met, seeing you in the fading sunlight, your hair like fire, I realized I had never met anyone like you. Someone with such passion for life, someone who takes charge of their own fate and will never settle for an unhappy existence. I fell in love with that wild flame.” Joel leaned his head down closer to hers and lowered his voice. “I fell in love with you.”

Zoe’s eyes widened as Joel moved his head to hers, but when their lips met, her surprise melted away and she relaxed into the kiss. Closing her eyes, the jaguar leaned into Joel as she moved her hands to his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. The dragon briefly pulled away.

“I love you Zoe, I love you so much.”

Zoe smiled up at him and replied, “I know Joel, I love you too.” The words barely left her mouth before they were lip-locked once more.

Slowly they backed away from the sink, still passionately kissing each other, as they made their way back to their bedroom. The bed was still unmade, but they had no desire to pull away just to fix it up, especially since they were planning on making a mess of it. By the time they got to the room, they had managed to tear off each other’s shirts. Zoe fell back onto the bed and watched as Joel crawled on top of her. Pulling him into a kiss, the jaguar wrapped her legs around Joel and held him as close to her as she could, an overwhelming feeling of infatuation taking over her.

The love between them grew immensely that night. All was right in the world for them, and together they passionately consummated their relationship, feeling comfortable enough to do so.

The next few weeks blew past as the two got settled into their home. It wasn’t long before the house was fully furnished and stocked up with food, and as the seasons set to change, Joel finished with digging up land for farming.

Early one morning, before the sun rose up, Zoe roused from sleep. Her stomach churned hard, and she bolted for the bathroom as quickly as she could, hoping she wouldn’t vomit before reaching the toilet. Still too dazed from sleep, she tripped as she ran out of the room and fell on the floor, unable to hold back once her stomach hit the floor. As she puked, a small sob escaped her, as the pain from not only the fall but also the heaving left her unable to move. The jaguar pushed her head away from the fetid pool she made on the floor and laid down on her side, moaning.

“Joel…” She cried out weakly. Stretching a foot out, she pushed on the door until it swung open quickly and slammed on the wall. Rustling came from the bedroom.

“Joel!” Zoe cried out again, this time a bit louder. Groaning sounds were heard among the shuffling sounds of sheets on the bed. “Joel help me!” Joel replied faintly.

“What is it? The sun’s not even up yet.” His grumbling voice seemed a bit irritated, most likely at him having been woken up so early. Zoe scooted as best she could to get closer to the bedroom.

“I need you!” She wailed. The tears began to flow as she woke and the pain of yet another stomach churn brewed inside her. Joel struck up a match and lit a candle before grabbing his glasses and sitting up to see where she was speaking from.

When his tired eyes spotted his mate lying on the ground, he gasped. Jumping out of bed, he set the candle on the dresser and leaned down to pick her up, but she put out her hand to stop him. The dragon cocked his head at her.

“Wait, just—“ she couldn’t finish the sentence before puking again on the floor. Joel scooped her up quickly and stepped over the pool on the floor, laying her on the couch.

“Let me grab you a bucket, hold on,” he said frantically. The dragon ran outside for a bucket and came back in, handing it to her not a moment too soon, as she threw up in it as soon as she pulled it close to her. His eyes trailed back to the vomit on the floor and he sighed.

“I’ll clean up the mess on the floor, but then I’m going to fly out to the town and get the doctor.” Grabbing a rag and a bowl of water, Joel dabbed up the pool until it was gone. As he pulled on a coat and slipped on shoes, he felt a tug on his sleeve. Turning around, he could see a look of panic across Zoe’s face, and he paused.

“Please don’t go…” she whispered, setting the bucket down and reaching out to him with both hands. A small sniffle came from her as she held back more tears. The dragon pushed her up a bit and sat down on the couch, resting her head on his lap. He petted her slowly, massaging her ears.

“I really do need to get the doctor, Zoe. I swear, I’ll be as quick as possible. Longest you should have to wait is 20 minutes, but you’ll probably only have to wait 10,” he said, feeling her tense up. Wiping a tear from her cheek, he leaned down and kissed her. “You’ll be fine, I promise.”

Joel stood up from the couch, placing her head down gently on the cushions. He thought for a moment before wandering back to the bedroom, grabbing a pillow and blanket. Bringing them back to his mate, he helped her get comfortable, tucking in the blanket around her feet.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

The dragon took off into the sky and made a beeline for the town. He flew as fast as his wings would carry him while his thoughts were filled with worry. Remembering where the resident doctor lived, Joel narrowed his eyes as he searched from afar. The doctor, a rather solitary gecko named Vince, resided in a brick and stone home on the outskirts of town. His house seemed to stick out from the rest of the buildings, and within moments Joel had located it. He landed quickly and knocked loudly on the door, shifting around on his feet uneasily. After a few seconds with no response, he knocked again. A sound came from inside and soon after the door opened.

“Joel? What are you doing here?” Vince yawned and rubbed his eyes, opening them widely as he saw the massive dragon in front of him. Joel grabbed him and took off again, the gecko screaming. He swung himself up and wrapped his tail around Joel’s leg that held him, still panicking.

“Where are you taking me!!” He yelled. No reply came from the dragon as he flew back home.

As they came in for a landing, the doctor released his grip with his tail and placed his feet on the ground, while Joel shifted back.

“Sorry for that, Vince, but Zoe’s in pain and she’s sick and I couldn’t wait,” he explained as he opened the door. The jaguar was lying on the couch, miserable, the back of her left hand on her forehead and her right resting on the edge of the bucket. Vince scurried over to her and kneeled down, checking her vitals. The dragon closed the door behind them and watched him work. Nervously tapping his fingers together, he walked around behind the couch before moving a hand down to rub his mate’s arm.

“So, it seems she’s been sick to her stomach? But you’re fine?” Joel nodded in response.

“It couldn’t have been the food, since no one else has been sick.” His eyes trailed down to Zoe’s face.

The doctor glanced up at Joel. “Well, she isn’t running a fever and shows no signs of illness. Have you two had sex within the month?”

Zoe’s breathing stopped and she made eye contact with her mate, who also froze. She released a soft “yes.” A small laugh came from the gecko.

“Well then I’d say you’re probably pregnant! Congratulations!” He stood up and headed for the door.

“I’ll need to check in with you two from time to time, at least two or three times a month, to make sure the pregnancy is going alright. For now, you’ll be dealing with morning sickness, which could last longer than just the morning, but as time goes on you might notice some cravings, your body swelling, and your bladder becoming remarkably small. That’s all normal. Just keep on eating well, resting whenever you need to, and you should be fine.” Opening the door, he finished with, “Feel free to visit me if anything comes up.”

As the doctor left, Joel looked away from Zoe. He wasn’t sure what to think. Slowly making his way around the couch, he nudged the jaguar’s feet out of the way and sat down, unable to speak. Zoe sat up and shifted around under the blanket until she was able to lean on her mate. Wrapping an arm around him, she turned her head into his side.

“…Joel?” He didn’t reply. Zoe curled up against him a bit more.

“I’m scared.” This jerked him out of his daze and he looked down at her. Her face was filled with fear. He pulled her up and placed her on his lap, hugging her tightly.

“Me too.” Zoe closed her eyes and leaned into him. “Eventually I wanted to be a father, but I didn’t think I’d end up being one so soon.” Joel closed his eyes too and swayed back and forth a tiny bit. His mate took a deep breath, her inner strength overruling her initial panic.

“We can do this. We may not have meant to become parents this early into our life, but we will be, and it’s up to us to make sure we do the best we can for our child.” She opened her eyes and lifted her head up, holding Joel’s jaw lightly. Opening his eyes, he gazed at her lovingly. They kissed deeply before he replied.

“I know. It’ll be hard, but we can do it.” The dragon was still nervous, but seeing how confident his mate was helped reassure him.

\--

A few months passed and before long, Zoe’s belly began to grow, her pregnancy finally becoming quite evident. The town was thrilled at the news and threw her a big baby shower. Josephine, the wolf wife to Frank the ram, hosted the event and went all out with the decorations. According to her, it had been many years since anyone had been expecting, and hope of new life was exactly what everyone needed to feel reenergized.  Justin had built them a crib and Meg sewed adorable baby clothes. Joel and Zoe couldn’t have been more excited for their future family.

Zoe’s pregnancy reached the five month mark, and by this time, autumn was in full swing. The air grew colder and colder each day as winter crept around the corner. Joel had had another full day fixing up around the house and pulling in food from their supply, while Zoe remained indoors drawing and sewing. Some of the other children from the town had visited her that day for an art lesson, and afterwards she felt inspired to paint the flowers on the table that Joel had brought in for her a few days before.

Taking off his shoes and hanging up his coat, the dragon meandered over to the table where his mate sat, hard at work. He gave her a kiss on her head and sat down next to her.

“How’s it coming along?” He asked, pulling up closer to watch. She dabbed more color onto one of the petals before placing the brush in a cup of water.

“Well, I’ve probably painted better, but it’s been a while,” Zoe said, leaning back in her chair. “This baby bump sure makes it harder to lean into what I’m doing.” A small laugh escaped from her, and Joel smiled warmly at her.

“I think it looks beautiful. Your artwork is incredible; I wish I got to see your earlier stuff when we first met though. I know you’ve got it hiding somewhere—“ She cut him off.

“Yes, and that’s because it’s gross looking. I’m not gonna just show off my bad art you know.” Rolling her eyes, she pushed back from the table and stood up.

“I think I’ll take a break for now, let that dry, before I continue. Might nap,” she said, stretching her arms. Joel nodded.

“I’ll make dinner then.” The dragon followed suit and stood up before walking over to their fireplace. He tossed in a few more logs.

His mate headed off to their bedroom and he made his way back over to the kitchen. As he pulled out some yams, he noticed the sunset light being partially obstructed. Joel turned to look out the window. Squinting, he could see a group of four or so people flying. He focused harder, and that was when he realized that the strangers were dragons, and that they were headed directly for them.

The blood in Joel’s veins ran cold and he dropped the yam he had been holding. Slowly backing away from the window, he turned to the bedroom and darted over to Zoe, shaking her a bit.

“Zoe, are you awake?” He asked frantically. The jaguar opened her eyes and looked at him.

“I never fell asleep.” She saw the panic-stricken look on Joel’s face and her initial smile faded. “Why, what’s wrong?” He swallowed the lump in his throat and lifted her up from the bed.

“Y-you need to go out back. Head out the back door and wait against the wall.” Zoe went to protest, but he cut her off. “When I growl, you run for the town and you get help. Do not turn back, just run. Bring as many people and weapons as you can.” The dragon choked back a sob as Zoe stepped into her slippers and pulled on a coat. Joel glanced outside again and saw the dragons were nearing their home. Zoe looked around him to see what he was looking at and when she spotted them she gasped, her face going pale.

“Oh my god Joel. Oh my god. They found us,” she whispered, stepping back. Her mate pushed her to the back door.

“Get outside. Don’t run until you hear my signal,” he murmured. Turning his head around, he could see the dragons only moments from the door. “Get out, now!”

Tears ran down Zoe’s cheeks as she closed the door behind her. Her heart raced as she backed up against the wall, and she froze the moment she heard knocking on the front door. Joel could see all four were standing around the entrance of their home, so he hid around the side of the door. He had forgotten to lock it when he came back inside, and when one of the dragons opened the door, he stepped into their way, snarling. At the front of the group was Raphael, who had an evil grin across his face.

“At long last, we’ve found the lost prince!” He proclaimed sarcastically. Joel growled loudly, signaling for Zoe to run. Her heart dropped as she heard it, knowing she’d have to abandon her mate, but she did as she was instructed and bolted for the town.

The other dragons, who he discovered were royal guards, pushed their way inside, causing Joel to step back. Raphael moved closer to him, enjoying the fear he struck in the younger dragon. The white dragon snarled and reached out quickly, clawing Joel’s face and knocking him off-balance. The blue dragon regained his composure in seconds and lurched forward to attack the meek dignitary, but two of  the guards with him shot forward and pinned him against the wall.

“You’re a disgusting disgrace to dragonkind,” Raphael said, getting up close to Joel’s face, “You fucking weakling.” He backed away as the fourth dragon moved forward. He wound up his arm and punched Joel hard in the face, nailing him in the jaw and disorienting him. The dragon landed another blow on him, this time hitting his nose. A trail of blood drained out of Joel’s left nostril. The guard backed off and Raphael moved forward again. The dignitary dug his claws into the bottom of Joel’s stomach and slid his hand up, gouging up until he reached his rib cage. The blue dragon screamed out in agony, much to Raphael’s delight.

“Oh, we’re not done yet. I want to see you feel like the dirt you are before I’m done with you.”

\--

Over in town, Zoe panted heavily, slamming her fist on Frank’s door. “Frank! We need you! We need everyone! Please open up!”

The ram opened up his door as Zoe fell onto him. He caught her and helped her stand again, concerned.

“What is it?” He asked, waving his mate over to the door. Josephine gasped and went to grab the exhausted jaguar a cup of water.

“It’s the dragons, the dragons we left behind! They found Joel and he sent me to get help and I don’t know what they’re going to do to him and—“ the wolf cut her off.

“Shhh, calm down. We’ll help you,” she murmured softly. “We can make it back while Frank rounds up the others.” Josephine took Zoe’s hand and walked with her as they made their way back to the center of the village. Frank went to each home and got everyone he could and brought them back to where Zoe and his wife were waiting. The jaguar cleared her throat.

“There are dragons, strong, terrifying dragons back at my home, and we need to stop them from killing Joel. I need all of your help to drive them off!” Everyone nodded and cheered. One of the villagers, a moose named Oliver, offered Zoe a ride on his back on their way there, which she gladly took. Raising their torches and weapons of choice, the villagers took off for Zoe’s home, while Zoe clung tightly to Oliver’s antlers and prayed that her mate was okay.

\--

“Get up! Get up you sorry excuse for a lizard!” Raphael spat viciously. Joel was curled up on the floor, his shirt torn off. He was covered in marks from where he had been beaten, bruises already starting to form under his skin, as he weakly pushed off from the floor. The white dragon stood up straight again and glanced around the room to see what he could use next on Joel. That was when his eyes spotted the painting Zoe hadn’t finished earlier. The blue dragon’s eyes widened and he gasped.

“So… you don’t live by yourself.” He picked up the piece of paper and studied it. “This painting technique is quite excellent; surely you couldn’t have done this, Joel. I’ve seen your art before.” Raphael glanced down at the dragon on the floor and opened his mouth to speak, when he was cut off.

“Prince Raphael, there’s a haze off in the distance,” A guard said, pointing out towards the village. The white dragon looked up and saw the approaching mob. All he could do was chuckle darkly.

“So it would seem you sent your living partner out to get help.” He leaned down close to Joel. “Perhaps I should show you my art too. After all, it’s how I found you in the first place.” Snapping his fingers, Raphael pointed at the blue dragon and stood up, speaking to the others. “Again.”

Joel preemptively flinched as two of the guards kicked him in his ribs and legs once more, a wail of pain coming from him.

“Get out there. I want to see this cat for myself.” Joel looked up at him.

“H-how did you know—“ he was cut off.

“Stupid boy, the front guards told me. The day you disappeared they told me they allowed a strange cat onto the castle greens. Apparently she was interested in painting the castle, what a load of shit, and they never saw her leave. Which means—“ he stopped himself and signaled the guards to go outside, “I get to meet her myself.”

Joel gasped and reached out for the back door before the one guard inside stepped on his arm, pinning it on the ground. Raphael followed his men out the back door, where they were greeted by a mob of angry villagers who had come to a halt. Zoe climbed down from Oliver’s back and froze as she saw the white dragon standing outside and accompanied by two frightening guards. He stepped forward.

“If any of you make another step towards this house, we will kill every single one of you. We will burn your homes to the ground, gut your children, and wipe you off the map. Do you all understand?” Terrified nods came from the group. “Good. I hoped you were all smart enough not to interfere with royal matters.

“Now, could the other resident of this home step forward? I would _love_ to meet them.” Zoe froze. She looked behind her at her friends to find them all staring at her. Raphael noticed and walked over to her, towering over her as she shrunk herself down a bit in fear.

In a low voice, he said, “So, you’re the one he ran off with; the little artist.” The white dragon quickly grabbed her hair and dragged the jaguar towards the house as she cried out in pain. Once they were inside, he threw her to the ground next to Joel, who gasped when he saw her.

“Look at this! Look at who he chose to run off with! A disgusting _feline_! He could have run off with a beautiful dragon, but instead he chose a low-life beast only fit for life in the streets!” The dragon scanned her body. “And not only that, but he also sunk so low as to breed with it! And now he’ll have a revolting mutant for a child!” He roared. “Only fitting don’t you think?” The guards burst out laughing.

Raphael cackled and walked around the two lying on the floor. Zoe sobbed and curled up as Joel moved closer to her. The rage inside him burned hot, and his internal body temperature began to swell. The guards kicked the jaguar’s back and legs and she cried out, the dignitary walking to her front side.

“Or perhaps… we should spare him the pain of seeing the child be born.” He reached a hand up and prepared himself to slash into Zoe’s belly. Waiting for the guards to cheer him on, Raphael swiped down, only to have his hand blocked by a wing.

Joel had found the energy to shift one of his wings out and used it to protect his mate, infuriating the prince.

“No more of this! I’m not going to put up with it!” The guards kicked Joel’s head and pinned his wing back, standing on it. The white dragon was too frustrated to claw up Zoe’s belly, so instead he used all his power to kick her. The moment his foot hit her, she screamed so loudly the townspeople outside could hear it, and it sent a chill down their spines. Joel roared at him and thrashed around violently, trying to shift into his fully dragon self. One of the guards grabbed his horns and shook his head, disorienting him again, before throwing his head back down to the ground.

“Guards!! Get the rope! Tie them up together! I’m done messing around,” Raphael commanded. The two of them were placed up so they were sitting back to back before one of the dragons wrapped them up in a thick rope. Zoe sobbed, feeling defeated, as Joel clenched his fists and glared up at the white dragon, the hate in his eyes so strong that the dignitary stepped back upon making eye contact.

“Now then, I think it’s time we got to the main event!” Pulling out a book from a bag on his hip, Raphael turned to a marked page and cleared his throat.

“ _I call upon the magic within me. The blue dragon and the jaguar before me are unworthy of their magic, and with the harnessing of mine finely tuned, I hereby render them powerless by removing them of their shapeshifting powers. Give me the strength to make them human!”_ The white dragon moved his hand over their heads and slowly pulled it up. Zoe and Joel felt something inside them start to split away, and the feeling only grew until it was nearly unbearable. Like a bandage ripping off flesh, their powers of shapeshifting were torn out of them, and as the dignitary’s hand pulled up, floating images of a jaguar and a dragon floated out of them. His hand at its highest, Raphael clenched his hand up and pulled away quickly, rending the images in half as they screamed, while Zoe and Joel felt the remainder of their powers wither away.

Zoe’s tail dematerialized and her ears turned human, while Joel’s horns disappeared along with his tail. They gasped for air, tears streaming down their cheeks. The white dragon, satisfied with his work, walked past them and out to the horrified group of villagers. He reached out and took the torch from Frank’s hand.

“Thank you so much for letting me do my job, by the way. Really didn’t want to have to kill you all.” He turned back and went inside, kneeling down next Joel, who hung his head low.

“You see, my orders were to make sure you never come back to our kingdom. And, well, with you having gone and complicated things,” he pointed to Zoe, “I figured I needed to send a message. So, I must regrettably inform you that you’re going to die tonight.” He stood up.

“Such a shame you made this choice in life.” Raphael picked up Zoe’s painting again and admired it. “Such a shame.”

Burning the paper up in the torch, he tossed it down onto the couch, which started to smolder. The white dragon handed the torch to one of the guards.

“Light it up. They will not leave this building alive tonight,” he ordered as he walked out. “I’ll be waiting outside.” The dignitary left the house and went out front. The remaining guards began setting parts of the house on fire, and before long, flames engulfed the roof of their home. Laughing to themselves as they left, the dragons exited their home and transformed with Raphael before taking off into the night.

The townspeople rushed in and dragged Joel and Zoe out, pulling them to safety. Frank cut the ropes while Vince darted over to check up on them.

“We need to get them back to my place so I can more thoroughly help them,” he said frantically.

Zoe leaned against Joel and, despite being in a daze, watched as her home burned to the ground. She wrapped her arms around him and wept, everyone else choking back tears, as her mate didn’t even move. Tears rolled down his cheeks, but all he could do was stare at the fire, incapable of moving or speaking. The shock of not only losing his powers, facing people he had hoped he had left in the past, and seeing his home be destroyed in front of him was more than he could take. The villagers picked them off the ground and carried them back to Vince’s home, and Joel continued to look back at the smoldering remnants of his home before breaking down into a mournful sob.


	4. Chapter 4

The sun rose over the hills and illuminated the morning fog that covered the land. The town began to wake, each person feeling their hearts weighing heavily in their chests as they thought back to the events of the previous night. The crest on which the burnt home used to be was nothing more than charred wood, ash, and haunting memories of what awful magic had been used on that very site. Smoke still rose from the remains, though it had tapered off.

Back at the doctor’s house, Joel had risen from his bed and stumbled over to the window. Seeing the burnt remnants of his home far off in the distance, he sighed before turning back around. His mate was still fast asleep from the painkillers she had received last night. Still, she seemed distressed in sleep. The dragon gently sat down beside her and rested his hand on her shoulder, making her flinch a bit in her sleep. He moved his hand back quickly, afraid he had startled her, but more slowly rested his hand back down on her without a second reaction from the jaguar.

Raphael’s words to him had shaken him to his core, and he hadn’t spoken since. Turning his head, Joel noticed a shuffling sound coming his way, and he spotted Vince scurrying over.

“You seem to be alright, despite your bruises, cuts, and whatever head trauma you obtained, and even then you don’t seem too worse for wear.” The gecko stepped closer. “Of course, that’s all physical. Emotionally,” he squatted down in front of the dragon, “I don’t think I’d know where to begin.”

Joel stared into the doctor’s eyes for only a moment before looking away as he felt tears welling up. He bit his lip to distract himself.

“I can’t begin understand what you’re going through right now. Losing, well, an integral part of one’s identity like that… there just aren’t words for it, I suppose.” Vince glanced up at Zoe. “I feel so sorry for both of you. Neither of you deserved this.”

Joel eyes widened and he stood up in a hurry, startling Vince. He clenched his fists for a moment.

“Joel, I mean it. This isn’t your fault.” He got up and stepped back, the much taller dragon intimidating him. He whipped his head around and glared at him.

“Not my fault, are you kidding me?!  If I hadn’t abandoned my royal duties, then I wouldn’t be without my powers!” He roared. “Zoe wouldn’t be powerless either, nor would she be stuck with a child! This is _entirely_ my fault, so don’t tell me that it’s not!” Out of breath from yelling, Joel pushed the doctor away from him and stormed out the door, snarling. He started out briskly walking, but it wasn’t long before he broke out into a full-on run. The dragon’s mind was full of guilt and his body in pain. Ignoring Vince’s calls, he kept on, tears streaming down his cheeks.

By the time he reached the bottom of a hill, he could barely run. Pulling himself up, his face a runny mess of tears and mucous, Joel collapsed in the damp grass. Curling up, the dragon sobbed.

“I’m so sorry Zoe, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean for any of this to happen to you!! I should have never left, and you never should have found me! We should have just forgotten about each other!!” He could barely get the words out as he shouted. Grabbing his head, he pulled his knees up to his face and gripped into the sides of his head with his nails, his whole body shaking as the tears continued to flow.

Vince gasped for air as he reached the top of the hill. Stumbling over to Joel, he placed a hand on his arm and the dragon curled up more.

“Look, Joel,” he paused for a moment to catch his breath, “I’m sorry I said it wasn’t your fault. I’m just not going to outright blame you for this, but I’m sorry if my attempts to make you feel better backfired.” The gecko pulled on him so he faced up. “You’re here now, though. You can’t stay mad at yourself forever over some shitty decision.”

Vince pulled up on Joel’s arm. “Let’s get you back to my place. Zoe woke up when you ran off, and there’s something I need to tell you guys.” The dragon took a deep breath and laid there silently for a few seconds before allowing the doctor to help pull him up. Leaning on him, Joel shuffled his feet in the wet grass as they made their way back to the house.

Vince placed Joel onto his bed next to Zoe’s and pulled up a chair. The jaguar kneeled next to the bed and quickly took her mate’s head in her hands.

“Oh my god, Joel, what happened? You yelled about something and then stormed off and I didn’t know where you’d gone!” She rested her head next to his and lowered her voice to a low murmur. “You worried me.” Joel turned to face her and sighed, curling up. The gecko cleared his throat and they glanced in his direction.

“I’m afraid there’s something we need to discuss.” He lowered his head and glanced away from the couple. Zoe turned herself to face him.

“You see, without your ability to shapeshift, you’re classified as human, and, well, humans aren’t allowed to live anywhere they want.” Vince looked back up. “Humans are confined to a colony to the west of here. It’s a two-day journey, so relatively short, but,” he fiddled with his fingers, “obviously you won’t be able to return.”

The jaguar turned back to her mate and lowered her head sadly. Joel moved a hand to her arm to comfort her for a moment before slowly sitting up. Swinging his legs to the edge of the cot, he steadied himself, turning his head to face Vince.

“How soon do we have to leave?” He asked. The gecko shrugged.

“By midday, preferably. None of us have anything against humans, but the faster we get you out of here, the better off for you two.” Standing up, he walked over to the door. “I’ll alert the others that we’re going to get you both ready to leave. Take whatever you’d like from the drawers in this room; they’re spare clothing I’ve amassed over the years for patients and they’re all clean. I’ll be back soon.”

The door swung shut quickly. Zoe sighed as she steadied herself on her knees, and Joel noticed her struggling to stand up. He took her hand and supported her as she rose, and soon after they began to rummage through the various articles of clothing available to them. Settling on a simple pair of pants and a long-sleeved shirt, Zoe dug around until she found a heavy-duty cloak.

“This should work for when it rains,” she muttered to herself. Joel meanwhile pulled on a new shirt, keeping his old pants and boots on. His mate glanced over at him. “I’d look for a coat or something. Something to at least cover your head should the weather turn south.”

Nabbing a few extra pairs of clothes, they picked up what few belongings they had left and headed for the door when it suddenly burst open. Meg and Josephine burst through, followed by Vince and Frank.

“Oh dear me, look at you two!” She pulled Joel and Zoe into a tight hug. “You weren’t even here a year and we have to say goodbye to you two!” Tears were welling up in her eyes. Leaning her head up, she gave each of them a kiss on the cheek. The doe pulled away and turned to Josephine before moving back around, holding two small baskets.

“I made you some meals to take with you, as a little reminder of home, or I suppose your old home.” Her voice began to climb as she finished her sentence, so she shoved the baskets in their hands before turning out the door and stepping beside the house to cry. Zoe found herself choking up too, so she leaned into Joel for moral support. Josephine and Frank stepped forward as Vince went out to console the crying deer. The wolf took a small bag from her mate’s arm and gently placed it in Zoe’s hands, opening it up and digging through it. After a moment of searching, she pulled out a small stuffed doll, shaped like a jaguar with dragon wings. It was fleecy and incredibly soft to the touch, and the jaguar held it to her chest as tears trickled down her cheeks.

“Th-thank you Josephine—“ she was cut off when the wolf hugged her tightly. Joel too started to well up, so he looked up and away to hold back a bit.

“I wanted to surprise you with this when you gave birth, but since I won’t be there, I wanted you to have it now.” Her words were quiet as she pulled away. Josephine glanced up at Frank who leaned close to them.

“As far as we know, there’s no way to get your powers back, but just in case you do, we’ll hold onto your property for you for a year. If you don’t come back, we’ll turn it back into wild land.” Joel nodded appreciatively to the ram who pulled him into a tight hug.

“Be careful alright?” He tried to hide the shaking in his voice. Joel leaned his head into Frank’s shoulder.

“I’ll try Frank, I promise.”

A few more goodbyes went around as Vince finished packing up their things and fed them breakfast. It was an hour before noon as they left the brick house and traveled west, waving to the town behind them. The valley the village was in was relatively easy for them to follow, as the forests on each side made following a straight path simple. Zoe recalled her journey to find Joel almost six months ago. The weather had been warm and the trip pleasant, but with winter only a week or so away, she found this journey to be much harder, not including the fact she was also pregnant.

Joel could see his mate pushing on as best she could, but worry soon consumed him. As soon as they reached a small boulder, he took her arm.

“You should really stop and rest. I don’t want you over exerting yourself. Remember, you’re still pregnant.” Looking up at him, she sighed.

“I suppose.” The jaguar stepped up onto the rock and got off her feet, which was when she noticed just how much they had been throbbing. Her mate sat down next to her and took out a piece of bread from his basket. He only nibbled on it a little bit before he lost his already small appetite. Watching as the sky began to cloud up, Joel glanced over at Zoe.

“H-hey Zoe?” He stammered. She turned around to look him in the eye.

“What is it?” The dragon couldn’t maintain eye contact with her and he looked down at the grass.

“I’m really sorry. About all this. You shouldn’t have had to suffer at the hands of dragons because of me.” His voice lowered and he kicked his foot out a little bit. A small laugh came from his mate, making him quickly glance up.

“Oh hun, you should know this wasn’t your fault. Hell if I had never gone to find you, you never would have left in the first place.” Resting against him, she followed with, “So don’t keep beating yourself up about it.”

Onward they went as the sun began to dip behind the horizon, though with the cloudy sky, the only thing they seemed to notice was everything getting darker. Although they were relieved at the lack of any rain, the temperature began to plummet, and with no real cover for them to rest under, they knew they’d have to rest exposed under the open sky. Zoe lacked her impressive night vision, so they hurriedly pulled out a thick blanket and placed it on the ground. Wrapping themselves up together, they curled up tightly and shivered.

“If only we were close enough to some trees; I’d start us up a small campfire,” Joel said, his teeth chattering. Zoe said nothing in response but only pulled herself closer to her mate. They could only hope it wouldn’t freeze that night as they lied there together, scared and vulnerable.

Dawn couldn’t have come soon enough, and even before the sun rose high, they pushed apart as they woke. Bundling up in their robes again, the two of them wolfed down their breakfast. Zoe and Joel hurriedly got going again, hoping to warm up.

“If we can keep a brisk pace, then chances are we’ll reach the colony by nightfall,” Zoe said as she walked. Joel nodded and kept up with his mate, making sure she was pausing to rest whenever she seemed fatigued or her feet were hurting. His eyes trailed up to the open sky every so often, and he longed to take flight. He could almost feel the familiar feeling of his wings flapping, but when he glanced behind himself, he saw nothing.

After a few hours of traveling, they came upon an empty dirt road. Weeds littered the edges, but the path seemed travelled just frequently enough that they didn’t grow further in. A quarter of a mile away was a sign. Zoe took Joel’s hand and led him to it, where they discovered it was a small map, one that guided them further to the human colony. Exchanging looks, they followed the road. Every so often they’d encounter a split in the path, but they all led either to towns or larger kingdom borders.

On and on they traveled. With no places for Zoe to stop, she found herself gritting her teeth and pushing forward. The dragon took notice and after a while couldn’t bear to see his mate pressing on through the pain.

“Zoe, let me carry you,” he said, taking her shoulder to stop her. She stepped back.

“Why? You’re in no condition to be doing something like that. I’d only slow us down; let’s just keep moving.” She turned to continue walking. Joel growled and grabbed both her arms to stop her.

“No, I’m going to carry you!” He pulled her back towards him and she started wriggling.

“I can do this Joel! I don’t need you to do this for me!” She snarled at him. The dragon pulled her back against him and hugged her tightly, trying to keep her from walking away. “Let go of me!”

He lowered his head a bit and held tighter. “Zoe, please! Just let me! I’m fine, I can carry you without any issues, I just—“ he paused as she squirmed harder in his grip, “I hate seeing you in pain! Alright?” Zoe stopped moving. “ And knowing how badly your feet must be hurting you, I just want to help!”

Releasing her, he kept his head low. She turned to face him. “I know you do Joel, but if you pick me up, you could wind up hurting yourself too. Let’s just keep moving forward so we can get to the colony and rest there.” Zoe released a small whimper. “I don’t want to sleep out in the open again, I’m sorry.” He looked up at her and rubbed his face with his hands, sighing.

“Okay, fine. Let’s keep moving.” His words were monotone. He sympathized with his mate’s concerns, but her current well-being weighed heavily on him. The small outburst had taken a quite a bit out from him, and now more than ever he just wanted someplace warm to stay.

Once more, the sun started to set, but in the distance Zoe could spot homes and farms. The jaguar urged Joel onward, and once he too could see the far off colony, they sped up their pace. Reaching the front gate, they found it ajar. They slowly entered, keeping their eyes peeled for signs of life, but it wasn’t until they had walked quite a ways up the road that they spotted people walking about, getting ready to head home and rest.

A child spotted them walking along the dimly lit street and called out from a window, “Hi there! Who are you?” The couple froze and looked about for the strange voice. Taking their parents out with them, the child led them out the door and to the road, where Zoe and Joel stood uncomfortably. Turning to face the child and his parents, they widened their eyes. These strangers looked very much like them, with no real animal traits, and the sheer sight startled them greatly. The mother of the child held out her hand.

“Welcome to our colony! It’s always nice to have newcomers. I’m Amy, and this is my mate Greg,” she said motioning to the man beside her. Amy ruffled her son’s hair. “And this little one who spotted you is Benjamin.” Ben giggled and grinned up at his mom who smiled warmly at him.

“We should probably escort you to the town center. That’s where all the new arrivals have to go. Greg, do you think you could take Ben back inside? I’ll be home in a little bit,” she asked, turning to her mate. He nodded and kissed her cheek.

“Come along Ben, mommy’s gonna show the new people the town, but you need to get to bed.” The young boy craned his head back as his dad took his hand.

“But daddy I don’t wanna!” They struggled with each other a little bit as Amy led them away. She couldn’t help but chuckle at her family’s antics.

“Anyway, at the town center is where the wiseman lives. He helps every newcomer find their place here, and he’d be more than happy to help you two as well,” she explained. As they walked, Amy continued to talk, but after a while, a question popped into Zoe’s head and she interrupted her.

“How did you get here? Did you lose your powers?” Amy looked at her for a moment.

“No, there haven’t been shapeshifters in my family for a few generations. I was born and raised here, and obviously this is where I’ve been all my life.” She paused. “Did you guys lose yours?” They looked away from her and exchanged glances, causing her to gasp.

“Oh my god, how terrible! I had no idea that people were still able to do that! Most of the time we get new people it’s because they never learned how to shapeshift and were sent off on the assumption that they couldn’t, but once they do they always leave. Otherwise… we never get anyone who only recently became human.”

The group continued onward until they reached the center of the town. The streets were still bustling with people, though light began to fill the surrounding homes more so than the roads themselves as families turned in for the night. Amy greeted those she knew as they moved forward, and before long they came to small hill. At the top sat a rather quaint house, smoke lazily trailing out of its chimney. Moving in front of the two, Amy gestured up to the building with her hand and spoke.

“This is the home of the colony’s wiseman, Winston. He came here a long time ago and helped us set up a reliable community, since before him we struggled to get along and everything was rather chaotic. Or so I’ve been told, anyway.” Amy motioned for them to head up the hill. “Talk to him. He’ll help you out.” Zoe and Joel started walking up the stone steps, nodding appreciatively at the woman.

“Oh, and welcome to the colony!”

She parted ways with them and headed back to her family as they climbed. The sky was streaked with orange, and as the couple approached the house, they could see the incredible view of the distant hills in the fading light. Zoe turned back at the dark valley to the west and sighed, missing their home.

“Come on, we should get inside,” Joel murmured to her, tugging her arm gently. He too felt the pang for home.

The dragon knocked on the door and waited, before hearing the sounds of someone coming to open it. An old man, only a little shorter than Joel, stood in the doorway. Initially he seemed surprised, but very quickly smiled at them.

“You must be new here! Please, come in. Make yourselves at home in my humble abode.” He shuffled them inside and closed the door. Leading them over to a couch, he tossed a log into the fire and wandered over to the kitchen, fetching them water. “Relax, I’m sure you’ve both come a long way.”

Zoe plopped down as quickly as she could and propped up her feet on his coffee table. When she noticed that the wiseman had seen her put her feet up, she went red and put them down.

“No no, you’re fine. If you were a child, I’d probably chastise you, but you’re pregnant. You’re more than welcome to get your feet off the ground,” he said as he brought the water over. Zoe sighed in relief.

“Thank you, I haven’t been able to get off them since this morning, really.” Joel moved closer to his partner and held her hand, taking the cup from their host. After handing them their water, he sat down in a chair to the right of the coffee table, clearing his throat.

“As you may have been told, my name is Winston, and I’m the wiseman of the human colony. I’ve lived here almost all my life. I’m a second generation human; my parents had their powers taken from them, and my father died before I was born.” Winston leaned in closer. “What about you two? Who are you, and how did you end up here?”

Zoe and Joel exchanged glances before turning to face the old man. Together they introduced themselves before recounting the tale of how they met and ran off together, and when Raphael found them. The wiseman listened closely, and they could see his heart drop as he heard their story grow more and more tragic. After they had finished, he closed his eyes for a minute and thought deeply. Standing up, he faced the fire place and watched it.

“I’m sure you know that once you become human, you never go back to your old life, yes?” Glancing behind him, he saw the two nod. A sigh escaped the old man’s lips. “That is the rule. Unless of course… you regain your powers. Then you’re free to live as you wish again.” He paused. “What if I told you that such a thing was possible?”

Zoe gasped and sat up a bit, though her mate’s eyes merely widened. “W-we’d be, well we’d be thrilled!” She said. Lowering back, the jaguar asked, “but how do we do it? And if it’s possible, why haven’t all the others turned back?” Fear nagged at her as the implications of withholding such information from the others made her nervous. Winston turned to face her.

“Because it’s a suicide mission. For most people anyway.” The old man’s stern eyes pierced her deeply, and Zoe shrunk back in the cushions. Joel rubbed her hand with his thumb.

“What do you mean a suicide mission?” He narrowed his eyes at the wiseman and cocked his head a little bit. Winston blinked slowly and cleared his throat again.

“I should first teach you a little bit about how our powers work, since it seems your understanding is rudimentary at best. All shapeshifters are born with shifting magic within us. Our very genetic make-up dictates our species, but without the magic, we cannot transform, and thus, become human. Now, those of us who are not human generate magic all the time. It’s as normal as the blood pumping through our veins. But when someone or something takes our ability to shapeshift from us, we stop producing that magic, as we are unable to access that part of ourselves.

“From the moment we lose our powers, the magic inside of us ebbs away. It takes about a week for it to completely disappear, but once it does, then no amount of magic can make us shapeshifters again. We’ll never be able to restart the process even if we did get our powers back, so we’ll never generate any more.” Winston paused to point at Zoe. “Your children will never have that magic inside them because they’ll be born without the ability, making them completely human their whole lives. They won’t even have animal traits like you two do. Like your ears, for example.” The wiseman motioned towards Joel, who reached up to touch his ears, almost defensively.

“You two haven’t had your powers for about three days, so if you were to go get them back, you’d probably have a fair chance.” Zoe and Joel looked at each other excitedly, before Winston interrupted their moment. “If not for two big problems.” Their smiles disappeared and they looked back over at the old man.

“Zoe, you are pregnant. Your child is sucking your magic from you faster than Joel is losing his naturally. You’ve probably got one or two days left of magic in you, instead of four.” The jaguar’s face paled and the wiseman lowered his head sadly.

“And that’s not all. My father died getting my mother to that pool. He just wasn’t as physically capable of dealing with the magic as she was, even despite her pregnancy.” His voice trailed off.

“Pool?” Joel asked. Winston looked up at him.

“Yep. The only way to get your powers back is to travel to a magical pool in the middle of a forest. Getting to the forest isn’t the hard part. It’s once you’re in the forest that the trip becomes, well, suicide. The closer you get to the pool, the stronger the magic around it, and the longer you stay in the magic, the worse you get. You see, the water’s magic doesn’t affect shapeshifters. The magic within them keeps them protected. But if humans should wander into those woods, they would wind up immensely fatigued within twenty minutes, and by thirty minutes would be dead. The magic drains your energy from you, so the more magic you have inside you, the more it wards it off, hence why shapeshifters are immune to it. But people like you, who have their magic draining, will only grow more and more susceptible to it as time passes.

“As I said though, that’s not the only thing. Certain species are more resistant to its exhaustive effects than others. The smaller and more vulnerable the species, the weaker they are to it. My mother was a red hawk, and my father was a weasel. He pushed out almost as long as she did, but like I said, to no avail.” Winston’s eyes glanced over at Joel.

“Dragons are probably the most resistant. Joel, you could probably survive there for a good five hours if you wanted to. Not that you’d want to push it.” He looked over at Zoe. “You, however, are a jaguar. Mildly resistant, but with you being heavy with child, that slight edge you have is almost nonexistent, and you’re probably about as hardy as a field mouse.

“For those reasons, I suggest that you two not make this journey. You’ll be safer here, and your family won’t run the risk of breaking, should one or two of you not survive.” The old man motioned towards Zoe’s belly as he said “two,” and Joel gulped. A wave of panic swept over the dragon.

“You know, he’s right Zoe. We should probably just settle here. It’d be easier on both of us.” He gave as confident of a smile as he could muster, but when his mate made eye contact with him, and he could see the sadness in her eyes, his smile faded. She turned to face Winston.

“If we live here, then our child will never know the outside world, will they? They’ll be stuck here their whole life, and their children will also never know the joys of freedom.” Zoe looked back at her partner. “But we still have a chance to save them from that fate. We can still give them a future worth living.”

The wiseman stepped forward and put his hand out. “A very low chance. It might not even be worth it.” The look of determination Zoe had as she looked back up at him surprised him, and he moved back.

“Any chance is worth it to save our child from a future like that. I want them to have choices in life. Freedom.”

Joel put a hand on Zoe’s shoulder and turned her to face him. “Zoe, this isn’t worth it. You’d risk your life AND our unborn child’s just so they could live in a valley instead of a colony?” His mate nodded.

“We got them into this mess. It’s up to us to fix what we’ve done.” Her unwavering voice took him aback. The dragon bit his lip uneasily.

“Please, let’s not do this. The last time we made a risky decision, it turned out poorly. Let’s not make the same mistake twice!” He cringed a bit as he saw her eyes widen. Zoe pushed him back and stood up a bit, briefly unable to speak.

“Joel. You still blame yourself for the attack. I told you, it wasn’t just your fault. It was because of not just us running off together, but also the unlucky chance that Raphael would use magic to find you. Just because of that, you’d throw away the future of not just our child but future generations of our family and doom them to live as humans?” She stepped closer to Joel and sat down on the arm of the couch, taking a deep breath.

“You remember what it was like to fly? You remember feeling yourself stretching your wings out, pestering me with your tail, decorating your horns?” Taking his hand, she continued. “Now imagine that our child will _never_ know what that’s like. They’ll ask why daddy has long and pointy ears while they don’t, and you’ll try to explain how it feels to transform and take off into the sky, but all they can do is wonder and dream about it, and one day we’d have to tell them about why we can’t do those things anymore. I don’t want that for them.”

Joel had lowered his head and shook as he felt himself well up, though he didn’t cry. “I… I don’t want to do that to them. But Zoe,” he looked up at her, “I’m afraid. I’m afraid I’ll actually get you killed this time.” The jaguar slid down onto the cushions of the couch and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly.

At first he slowly hugged her back, but as she kept holding on, he tightened his hold on her and pressed the side of his head into hers, breathing deeply. She pulled away and placed a hand on his cheek, stroking him with her thumb.

“You always seem to think I’m not also scared,” she giggled. “But I am. I just know this is the right thing to do, and also know that I won’t be doing it alone. And that gives me strength.”

Zoe turned towards Winston, who had been watching their whole conversation, and asked, “How do we get to the forest, and when should we leave?”

“Well, you just have to head east. As if you kept going instead of stopping here. You’ll cross through a rather wide open plain, but keep going and you’ll eventually find the forest.” He stepped closer to them. “When my mother passed, I went back out and put up signs, warning of the dangers that came with entering the forest, so you’ll know it when you see it. Just… when you enter, don’t stop moving. Keep looking for that pool, no matter what. If you decide to give up and turn back, then bolt for the edge of the forest. The more time you waste there, the higher your chances of dying.

“As for when you should leave, I would rest overnight and then leave early in the morning. It will take you all day to get there, but you really don’t have time to wait and rest just outside the forest for morning. I’ll be sure to give you both some torches before you leave.”

Leading them from the living room to the guest room, Winston helped them settle in for the evening. He grabbed them a small meal of meat and mixed vegetables to eat and then headed to bed, leaving them be. Joel closed the door and sat down on the bed next to his mate. She had already eaten the meat, but nibbled slowly on a sliced carrot. The dragon leaned against her.

“Hey, you okay?” He tilted his head and watched as she lowered her fork down to the bowl.

“Just trying, and failing, to clear my head.” Zoe looked up at him. “The less I think about our journey tomorrow, the better I feel about it. I mean, trying to stay all gung-ho about taking a trip I might never return from is hard. And while I know we need to do it,” she narrowed her eyes, “which I’m not budging on, by the way,” her gaze relaxed, “I’m still scared.”

Joel took the bowl from the jaguar’s hands and placed it on his nightstand before wrapping an arm around her. “I won’t argue with you on it, don’t worry.” He paused, rubbing Zoe’s arm gently. “But I do share your fears. Try and focus on the now. We have a warm place to stay for the night, the support of the wiseman, a filling meal, and hope. And that’s more than we’ve had in the last two days, combined.”

Zoe nodded. “That’s true. It’s just easy to lose sight of all that when you’re bogged down I guess.”

Stripping down to her underwear, the jaguar pulled back the blankets on the bed. She crawled in and pulled them to her nose, wriggling around snugly as she warmed up.

 Meanwhile, Joel brought their dishes back to the kitchen. Not wanting to be an ungracious guest, he began scrubbing them clean, when he heard shuffling sounds behind him. The dragon turned around to see Winston walking over to his pantry. The old man sighed as he opened a jar of jerky and took a few strips out before wandering over to Joel.

“That’s one determined woman you’ve got, you know that, right?” He gave a little smile. “I give her a lot of credit for sticking to her morals. Most people who lose their powers are too scared to try and get them back. I mean, it makes sense. You’ve already lost so much, why risk losing what little you have left?”

Winston leaned against the counter and took a small bite of the jerky, pausing as he lost himself in thought. “One road means you might lose your life, which is sometimes everything to most people.” He gazed up at Joel.

“But the other road, the road most people travel, means you, and everyone after you, lose everything. And I mean _really_ lose everything. Freedom, choices, things most people take for granted.” Walking to the other side of the kitchen, the wiseman crossed his arms behind his back.

“These people who live here, in this settlement, they know nothing of the outside world. They’ve developed a strong community, but that’s because it’s all they have. I grew up far from here. My mother raised me in hiding, and only a few people knew of our existence. We lived among the other avian shapeshifters of her family for years, but somehow word got out that our family was harboring humans, and eventually guards came and took us.

“I had only just become an adult, so they sought to jail me and my mother separately. The stress of staying in hiding had worn on her over the years, and I knew that being kept away from me would only push her closer to the edge she already danced so close to. After countless times where I tried to escape with her, or tried to incite riots, they decided I was more trouble than I was worth and sentenced me to death.” Winston looked back at Joel.

“I was ready to accept my fate, but my mother…she couldn’t handle the thought of living without me. She took my sentence for me in exchange for my freedom.” Lowering his head, he released his arms, putting a hand on a counter to steady himself. Joel moved behind him and rested his hand on the old man’s shoulder, hoping it would comfort him.

“Unfortunately, the only thing ‘freedom’ meant was being transferred from the prison to the human colony, and at the time, this place was a disorganized mess. I managed to rally people together and help everyone agree on things, so they crowned me the ‘wiseman of the colony.’ And ever since I’ve been helping newcomers settle in.”

Taking a deep breath, Winston turned to face the dragon. “You and your mate are the first people I’ve seen in a long time who have had their powers taken from them. But you’re the only ones who didn’t decide to just call it quits because of the risk in getting them back. I know I said you shouldn’t take the journey, but that’s out of my own fears and resignation to my life here. You two remind me of the strength and determination that I had a long time ago. I _want_ to see you two succeed. And I know that together, you can.”

The wiseman gently pushed Joel around him and out of the kitchen. “Go to bed. You need the rest. I’ll take care of the dishes, and I’ll see you in the morning.”

“I-if you’re sure,” Joel stuttered, a bit startled by the sudden change in topic. As he headed to the bedroom, Winston spoke again.

“And Joel?” The dragon paused and looked back.

“You have it too. The strength to push through. Even if it seems hard, or even impossible, you can do it.”

Joel nodded before turning back to keep walking. Crawling into bed next to his mate, he thought about what Winston had said about them, and he felt the struggle inside himself that he used to feel every night many months ago. Of course he knew he was capable of going through hard things; he’d done it many times before. And yet, just thinking about what laid ahead of him caused him to feel apprehension brewing inside his stomach. He didn’t want to travel to the forest, but he knew the alternative was worse. He’d lived with the ‘alternative’ to his actions for so many years already.

Joel knew he’d be going through with it anyhow, and dwelling on it was only stressing him out, so he cuddled up closer to Zoe and tried to clear his mind.

“ _I guess this is what Zoe was dealing with earlier. And now it’s happening to me. Funny how that works_.”

Steadily getting more and more drowsy, he focused on the rhythmic sound of his mate’s breathing, until he finally managed to drift off to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's here that the change in names started, since we broke up at the beginning of February.

Rousing from sleep, Joel blinked slowly and saw that his mate was no longer next to him. He jolted upright and looked around, relaxing when he spotted her walking back into the room. She was wearing a robe and held a cup of tea in her hand, and she sat down on the bed while taking a sip.

“Sorry if I scared you. I woke up early and started on breakfast, with Winston’s help, while you slept in,” the jaguar said, gently putting a hand on her mate’s leg. A voice in the other room called out.

“Zoe! The eggs and bacon are almost done!”

She stood up and reached behind the door, grabbing a robe and tossing it to Joel. “Put this on and come out to the kitchen so we can eat. I’ll be waiting for you.” Turning out of the room, she padded off to Winston to get her breakfast.

The dragon stretched out and yawned before tugging on the robe and standing up. Glancing out the window, he could only faintly see light outside and knew that the sun likely had barely risen. This made him groan a bit, but he knew that they were going to have to leave early anyway.

Walking out to the kitchen, Joel felt the air get colder, so he closed the bedroom door on his way out to trap the heat for when they would be changing later. The bathrobe he had on was very soft and warm, and he was thankful to have it. Spotting the wise man and his mate sitting at the island eating and chatting, the dragon found his plate of food and pulled up a chair, digging in hastily. The meal was absolutely heavenly to him. The eggs were cooked just right, and the bacon crumbling in his mouth.

“Oh _man_ I missed having breakfasts like this.” He closed his eyes and leaned on Zoe a bit, who smiled at him.

“It’s only been a few days, hun. Though I know what you mean. Even a few days without a decent breakfast can wear you down.” The jaguar glanced down for a moment, ruminating on her previous journey when she was traveling to find Joel.

Winston finished chewing his mouthful of food and swallowed before clearing his throat to speak. “I’d ideally like you guys to be on the move by roughly 10, that way you’ll be halfway to the forest by nightfall. You’ve got a little under two hours to prepare, which should at least help you not feel too rushed, though the sooner you leave, the better.” Taking another bite of his eggs, he finished with, “allow me to find you some clean clothes to wear. You’re also going to want some coats; it looks like rain today.”

Indeed, the sky was a brilliant red hue, but clouds were rolling in. Zoe checked outside herself and saw that the clouds weren’t too dark, and she was relieved that they wouldn’t be in for a storm.

“It’s probably best if we leave as soon as possible, so once we’re done eating we’ll head out,” she said. Winston nodded at her in agreement.

“That would be best.”

She and Joel hurriedly finished up their food before receiving some clothes from Winston to change into, and as they dressed they packed up their belongings. Zoe was stuffing things into her bag when she spotted the small toy that Josephine had made for her, and she sighed, rubbing her thumb against the fleece. The jaguar could hardly believe that she might actually be going back to that life, but also knew that very similarly she might not return from her trip. All she could do was hope for the best.

During their packing, the wise man had gathered up a few more things for them to take with them, including torches and food. Handing them raincoats and giving them some final directions on how to find the forest, he paused for a moment before hugging both of them tightly.

“Luck be with you on your trip. Hopefully we never have to meet again, and I mean that in a good way.” The old man chuckled and the couple couldn’t stifle small laughs from themselves either.

“Yep, hopefully,” Joel said.

All bundled up in warm clothes and their belongings properly packed up, Zoe and Joel headed out the door and walked down the road to the center of the colony and turned west. They would be traveling opposite the sun for a couple of hours, and then they’d be following it to the forest, long into the night. The jaguar pulled ahead and set a brisk pace, determination driving her feet. The path they were on continued far off to the horizon, and upon reaching a hill, they could see it went on even further than that. Exchanging glances, the two sighed and pushed onward.

Feeling her feet start to ache, Zoe signaled her mate to stop and walked over to the trail’s fence to lean on it. She craned her head back and rested on her elbows, sighing. Joel moved next to her.

“You gonna be okay?” He tilted his head at her. Zoe nodded, standing up again.

“Yeah. I’ll try not to stop too often so we don’t get behind schedule.”

Pressing on, they kept their breaks to a minimum. The rising sun warmed them, and before long they had to stop and remove a layer of clothing, packing it in their bags. Joel took his mate’s coat and put it into his belongings, wanting to keep her from being overloaded. More hours passed. They hadn’t spoken much so far in their trip, but after a while of walking through tall grass without a trail, the silence hung in the air uncomfortably. Zoe walked closer to her partner and lightly elbowed him.

“I’m really glad we decided to do this. Even if it is hard and sucks to do,” She chucked. Joel looked at her and shrugged, still a bit unconvinced.

“I suppose. I just hope it isn’t all a waste of time.” The dragon’s apprehension had clearly not faded, and he made sure that Zoe knew. She tilted her head and looked up at him.

“So what if it is? We still did it, right? I mean just look how far we’ve come!” She held her arms out for dramatic effect, but he still only rolled his eyes. Snorting a bit, Zoe crossed her arms and stayed silent for a minute, thinking.

“Well, it’s not like you haven’t done hard things before. Think back to when you were a kid and wanted to be a prince. You did that, right?” She walked a bit faster to get ahead of him and leaned her head down, forcing him to make eye contact. “Right?”

Joel leaned his head back and scoffed. “What’s your point? Yes, I went through that hell and become a prince, but it’s not like that’s the best example to use! Once I got there, I hated it!” Zoe smirked.

“Yeah? But it was your greatest mission in life, getting there. You put so much energy into it—“ She was cut off.

“And it was a waste! Which is how I feel about this trip now!” Joel growled a bit and walked faster, looking ahead to move past his mate. Zoe sped forward again.

“It was NOT a waste! You learned a lot and did more than most dragons will ever hope to achieve! And better yet, it led you to me! Your first dream might have been to become a prince, and when you finally did it you didn’t care for it, but the important thing is _you did it, and you went all in_! And when you found your new dream, which was to live off the land somewhere with me, you did THAT too! You went all in and have done so much!” Joel slowed down and looked at Zoe, raising an eyebrow.

“You know how to grow food, you know how to carve wood, you know how to be a loving and caring mate, and ALL of this is because you _tried_! You made a genuine effort because you knew that sticking to one thing that made you unhappy, simply because it was all you had ever really strived for, all you knew, was never going to make you happy. You sought out happiness.”

The dragon stopped. “What’s your point?” The jaguar sighed and caught her breath, thankful to take a short break.

“You have done so much in your life up to this point. What makes this any different?” Joel opened his mouth to object, but Zoe put a finger to his lips to keep him quiet.

“I want you to do something. I want you to tell me about your past, but mainly about your journey to becoming a prince. We talked about it a bit before, but I really want to hear you tell me about it again, in detail.” Sliding her hand to his, Zoe led Joel on so they would keep walking as he talked.

“If I have to…” he muttered.

“Well, back when I was just a kid I used to beg my parents to take me to the parades that the dignitaries would put on every now and then. I was obsessed with them and so desperately wanted to BE one of them. They had it all. They wore the fanciest outfits, they got to travel the world, and they had things delivered right to their doorstep if they just happened to want it. For a kid who lived in the middle class and was part of the average crowd, it seemed like something I actually could do.

“When I went to school, I studied hard and very early on picked politics as my major. There wasn’t a thing that could stop me. I aced my classes, graduated with honors, and made my way into the top dragon university without a hitch. I trained myself for the sparring, I stayed focused on what I wanted, and even though they pressured the hell out of me, I wasn’t gonna let anyone tell me that I couldn’t do what I had wanted to do my whole life.”

Joel paused for a few seconds in thought. “It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I almost quit a few times, afraid that I wouldn’t be able to handle the work they were putting on me, but then I looked back and realized that… what would I be going back to? A life where I failed, didn’t achieve what I wanted, and wallowing in that. I only had one way to go: forward.”

Zoe turned back to him, making eye contact. “That hasn’t changed, Joel. We can only move forward.”

Although he wanted to protest, he knew he couldn’t. She was right. Every word he had spoken merely proved to him everything she had been trying to say. Keeping his head down, Joel kept on walking.

Sometime after noon, they stopped to break for lunch, hardly speaking to one another. The dragon was left to stew in his thoughts while his mate continued to think about the path ahead, hoping to make it to the pool before dark. She hated having poor nighttime vision and couldn’t wait to get her shapeshifting back. The two packed up quickly and resumed their walk, passing by small creeks and entering a small meadow. By this point, the clouds from earlier had dissipated, and whatever chance of rain they had seemed to have tapered off.

Although they were in a hurry, Zoe couldn’t help but run around in the grass, pulling her partner along while laughing. The open area was massive, although distant mountains were visible off to the west, and with such an incredible view, it was hard not to get swept up in the vastness of it all. While Zoe was content to sprint across the ground, Joel kept his sights in the sky, sighing as he saw the open air and longed to stretch out his wings and take flight. The breeze was just right, and the clouds were high. Trying to keep his mind on their goal, he called Zoe over to him and they resumed their trek.

All the walking was catching up to them, and it wasn’t long until Zoe needed to rest. The forest was still out of sight, but they knew they were close, if the wise man’s directions were reliable. The unfortunate timing of the autumn sunset meant that they would be doing most of the rest of their traveling in the dark, and they would also need to bundle up, which would slow them down.

Unpacking their heavier coats, they pulled on a few extra layers, making sure they were properly dressed for the incoming cold. The added weight was enough to make Zoe stop and rest more frequently, although their pace hastened once the edge of the forest appeared on the horizon.

“We need to make a dash for it, then rest for a bit before going in there,” Zoe said. “I don’t know how I’m going to fare once we enter.”

Joel swallowed the growing lump in his throat and nodded, taking Zoe’s bag from her and putting it on top of his own. He took her hand and they lightly jogged across the final stretch of land. The moon had risen quite a ways, and knowing that the next morning their time would be up, they felt compelled to race to their goal. As expected, Zoe couldn’t handle the pace, and after a minute of running, tripped and fell to the ground, scraping her knee through the fabric of her pants.

“Zoe!” Joel slid to a stop and ran back over to her, helping his mate to her feet. Dusting herself off, she leaned against the dragon, testing the weight on her leg.

“I’ll be fine, but I think we’re gonna have to just walk our way there.” A drawn-out sigh left her lips, and she blinked out a few tears. Although they were partially caused by the pain, they were also assuredly because of her desire to reach the pool, and her short-sighted decision would cause them to slow down even more.

It took until the moon had just passed its peak before they had arrived at the edge of the forest. Although there was no physical indication of it, they could tell that there was a strong magical presence within the woods. Joel’s thoughts were preoccupied with his mate’s injury, and he wasn’t sure how long it would take them to navigate their way to the magical source, especially with Zoe on her last legs. A quick break was the last thing they needed to do, but he respected her wishes.

“Shall we?” Even the proximity to the magic was beginning to wear Zoe down, which was evident in her voice. The dragon tried to ignore it, but struggled.

They decided to leave their bags behind on top of a slab of rock, figuring the added weight might spell death, and should they succeed in getting their powers back, they could easily pick up everything on their way home.

Joel was unwilling to make the jaguar walk through the hilly forest, so he pulled her onto his back and carried her piggy-back as he made his way into the bramble. She was relieved to be off her feet and placed her hands on his shoulders, holding him tightly.

The forest was dark, aside from what moonlight was able to make it through the trees, and Joel found navigation to be almost impossible. Should he run around and risk tripping and falling but hope to stumble upon the pool more quickly, or should he carefully walk around and try to take in his surroundings while using up limited time? Unable to decide, he chose a middle ground and walked as quickly as he could through the growth. Even now he was starting to feel his body losing energy. Sliding down a small hill, Joel kept desperately searching in the dark for the pool of water, but the further he ran, the more lost he became.

“Zoe… I think we should turn back. I can’t… I can’t find it. And I don’t want you to die in here.” His breathing was labored and his arms began to shake. “I’m sorry Zoe.”

“Keep going. Please.” Zoe’s voice was only a whisper, and hearing how weak she sounded gave him a jolt of energy. “I know you can do it.”

Trudging up a hill, Joel found himself in a small clearing, although the water was still nowhere to be found. With a growl, he turned right and ran forward. _Please, please let this be the way_.

“ _Shhh_ … _listen_.” Joel stopped abruptly at his partner’s words. Turning his head, he heard the faint sound of a stream flowing, and he quickly glanced around, heart pounding. The sound was coming from the left, and in an instant he was booking it as fast as his legs could carry him. But Zoe’s sudden words made his blood run cold.

“ _I love you_ …”

“No, no, no, don’t die!” The dragon stumbled a bit but quickly righted himself, finding another small hill to climb. By this point he was on all fours, scrambling up the dirt and grabbing onto roots to pull himself up. “Stay with me, Zoe!” Her grip on his shoulder loosened.

Joel pushed his way through a bush at the top and fell to the ground. The adrenaline was rapidly draining from his body, along with his remaining strength, but in spite of this, he found the strength inside of him to rise up from the dirt and look forward.

A glowing pool of water lay in front of him, a faint orange mist emanating from the surface. Eyes wide, Joel pulled Zoe off his back and held her close against his chest, bridal-style, sprinting towards the water and collapsing into it, his mate in his arms.

The water felt warm, in a comforting, magical way, and he pulled most of Zoe’s body into it, leaving her head above so she could breathe, although she seemed to have stopped. He placed his hand on her chest and could barely feel a heartbeat, if he wasn’t imagining one that is, and feeling his worst fear fill him, all he could do was pull his likely-deceased mate’s body into his arms and hold her.

Through his sobs, the dragon profusely apologized to her, holding her head against his cheek and sliding one of his hands to her belly as he went to hold her closer to him, he realized the second potential death he had caused. He wailed in despair. Everything was his fault. His darkest fear had come true. At this point, he didn’t want his powers back, or to think he could go back to his friends without feeling immense guilt. He wished he had died alongside his mate and unborn child.

A glow began to surround his body. Although he felt the fire of magic within him again, he still felt empty, meaningless. The recharge of energy filled him up and he could feel his horns begin to emerge without pain, then the tips of his wings. But his gaze remained down on Zoe.

Closing his eyes and stifling back more tears, Joel noticed something bright in front of him, and opening them, saw a similar glow surrounding the jaguar. He gasped as he saw her beginning to float out of the water along with him, and as they moved upwards, her ears transformed back into feline ones, and a tail formed behind her. With his wings fully expanded and his tail shifted as well, Joel moved closer to his partner and held her waist in his hands. Zoe’s eyes slowly opened. She met the dragon’s gaze and felt herself welling up, a smile forming on her lips.

“See, I knew you could do it.”

His jaw dropped, and before he could respond, she placed her mouth on his and kissed him deeply, moving her hands to his jaw. Joel wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly, crying tears of joy this time, as he spread his wings and flapped hard, sending them up in a spiral into the morning sky.

The couple hovered in air, still locked together in a kiss. The sun had only barely begun to rise over the edge of the trees, shining a bright orange light onto them as they embraced. Joel looked around the trees and found one with a sturdy enough branch to rest on. They flew over to it and sat down, Joel wrapping one his wings around Zoe to keep her steady, and they leaned on each other to watch the sunrise.

They said nothing for a while. The morning was beautiful and they were finally able to enjoy their time together without worry for the first time in several days. They could finally just live in the moment.

“We’re safe now. Raphael thinks we’re dead, and no dragon will ever bother us again,” Zoe murmured. “Well, aside from our child.” She couldn’t help but giggle at her own joke, and Joel chuckled as well. An unexpected kick from Zoe’s tummy helped to make certain that their child had survived the ordeal, and Joel sighed in relief. Knowing his life was back on track, and that his child was still on the way was the perfect bookend to their journey, and at last he could feel at peace with everything.

Zoe nudged him once the sun had left the horizon. “Perhaps it’s time to get going? I can’t wait to get home to everyone.”

Joel nodded. “Yeah. We’re going to need to get our house rebuilt ASAP.”

The dragon picked her up and gently floated to the ground. A quick shift into his feral form and she mounted his back, ready for takeoff. Joel readied himself and leaped into the air, dodging branches until he had broken free of the woods. Feeling the crisp air on his scales and across his wings, he felt so free and happy once again, and as they began heading home (with a quick stop to grab their bags), he knew that their future could only look up.


End file.
